Father to Daughter
by DWTSfanatic
Summary: Troy is a single parent to his daughter Tressa who is starting high school at East High, where he works. Watch as he tries to take care of his little girl while keeping the memory of her mother, Sharpay Bolton, alive. Better summary inside.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey everybody! I just thought of this idea for a new story and wanted to see how this would go! Please tell me what you think!**

**Summary: Troy Bolton is a single parent to his beautiful 14 year old daughter, Tressa. She just started attending East High, where Troy works as the basketball coach. In her English class, she gets an assignment where she has to talk about the most inspirational person in her life. Immediately she chooses Troy, but during the project she starts to think about her mother and how her dad and mom fell in love. Watch as Troy tries his absolute hardest to make sure his little girl is happy and safe (and away from…boys), while still keeping the memory of her mother, Sharpay Bolton, alive. **

**Does that sound ok?! I hope so because I'm going to type the first chapter right now!!!  
Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize.**

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Troy smiled softly as he watched his daughter sleep; sitting gently on the side of her bed, pushing a stray curl away from her face. She had the slightest of smiles on her face; her head facing to her right as she lay on her back, snoring slightly which she had clearly gotten from him. Her dirty blonde hair was sprawled out messily above her, creating a halo of curls. Tressa Bolton, his 14 year old daughter, was the most important thing in his life right now. She was his pride and joy, his best friend and most importantly his little girl. He remembered 14 years ago when she was first born, so tiny and helpless and now, all grown up, attending high school in two days. It was like yesterday he was dropping little Tressa off at daycare while he would go to work. It was like yesterday when Tressa said her first word and took her first step. Now, she would talk non-stop, blabbing about the latest gossip with her friends or her day at school with him. Troy especially hated it when she would talk about…boys. He dreaded hearing about her latest crush; it made him cringe. But he knew that he had to deal with it and tell himself that she was growing up, whether he liked it or not.

He chuckled slightly while shaking his head. Tressa was so much more like her mother than she would ever know. Unfortunately, Sharpay had died while giving birth to Tressa. Something had happened during child birth and before Troy knew it she was gone and he was left with his beautiful daughter, Tressa Elizabeth Bolton was the name they had chosen.

Troy leaned down and planted a loving kiss on Tressa's forehead. "Sweet dreams baby girl. I love you." He whispered, tucking her in quickly before leaving the room. He quietly closed the door, making his way to his bedroom across the hall. Flipping the light switch on, he made his way to his dresser, changing into his pajamas. He glanced at the picture of Sharpay on the top of it. He gently traced his finger down her picture, smiling sadly. He stared at it for a second before walking to his bed and going to sleep for the night.

* * *

"Daddy?" Tressa said softly, shaking her fathers' shoulder. Instead of actually waking up, he shrugged her hand away and groaned loudly, rolling onto his back. Tressa giggled at her stubborn father before sitting on the bed, poking his cheek. That was something that Tressa had been doing for a long time. If her father wouldn't wake up, she'd poke his cheek and giggle as it moved like jelly and smiled as her father started smiling, trying to cover it with annoyance. He shooed her hand away again and she rolled her eyes. "Daddy, it's the day before school starts and it's tradition that we spend the day together before our crazy schedules interfere. I want my daddy- daughter day." She explained softly, the affection for her dad shining through. That was enough to get Troy's attention. He opened his eyes and came face to face with a pair of baby blue eyes, just like his. Tressa smiled at him, lying down next to him and wrapping her arms around him. "Morning daddy." She whispered and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

After shifting around, Troy wrapped his arms around his daughter and kissed the top of her head affectionately. "Morning baby girl."

Tressa giggled before standing up, taking a hold of his arm and trying to pull him up. He wouldn't budge, laughing as she tried her hardest to lift him up. She huffed and gave one last pull and failed. She gave up and kneeled down in front of his side of the bed. "You get up, brush your teeth, put on deodorant while I start breakfast. Chocolate chip pancakes?" She asked

Troy chuckled. She was definitely like her mother. "Aren't I supposed to be the one that makes breakfast since I'm the dad?" He asked, quite amused.

Tressa snorted, crossing her arms over her chest. "Please dad, let's get real here. You can't cook for squat. Thank goodness for Uncle Zeke." She giggled at his attempt of a pout. "You're such a little kid. Anyways," she shook her head, hair flying all over. "I'll start breakfast. You get ready for the day." She left the room, running to the stairs. "Love you." She called over her shoulder before running down the stairs, two at a time.

"Love you Tress!" He called back before throwing the covers off of him and stalking over to the bathroom, running a hand threw his messy hair. He did just as Tressa had told him to do before walking over to the picture of Sharpay. He smiled affectionately at it. "She's just like you Payday. You would be so proud of her." He kissed the picture before setting it down and leaving the room. Troy heard the voice of his daughter as she sang whatever song was in her head. She started singing as she flipped some pancakes over. After quietly sneaking in, he took a seat at the island counter and listened to her voice. It was a mixture of his and Sharpay's voice. It was simply perfect. She flipped the pancake in the air and twirled around before catching it on the spatula. Troy chuckled, picking up an apple and munching on that while waiting for the pancakes.

Tressa threw a smile at her dad before setting the finished pancakes on a plate. She turned all the burners off and set the pan on a cool burner. After grabbing the syrup from the fridge, she joined her father at the island, setting everything on the table. She sighed happily at the aroma before setting five pancakes on her plate and poured tons of syrup on the top. "That's my girl." Troy whispered, watching as Tressa giggled at his remark.

"I'll always be your little girl dad, don't worry about that." She grabbed his hand and squeezed it quickly before devouring her pancakes. Troy smiled softly at her and shook his head. 'Crazy girl' he thought as he grabbed five pancakes as well.

* * *

"Daddy, what do you think of this one?" Tressa asked, skipping out of the changing room. She had on a gorgeous light blue, strapless summer dress. It cut just above the knees and looked absolutely gorgeous on her tanned body. She did a twirl and giggled as the flowy material twirled out as well.

"_Troy- what do you think of this one?" An eighteen year old Sharpay Evans asked her boyfriend of a year and a half. The beautiful red dress was floor length, making her appear just a tad taller than what she normally was. It was a halter dress that tied around the neck with a bow right under the bust line. Her long, curly blonde hair ended just under her bust. _

_Troy couldn't help but smile goofily at her; that goofy boyish smile that Sharpay loved. He nodded his head, unable to form words. He cleared his throat and grinned. "You look absolutely stunning Payday." _

Troy shook his head a t the sound of Tressa's voice. He glanced up at her and smiled softly. "You look just like your mother." His voice was so quiet that it was barely audible.

Tressa smiled slightly and took a seat next to him, forgetting about the dress and grabbed his hand. "Tell me another story about her daddy." She demanded quietly. Troy put an arm around her shoulders and tried to think of a story to tell her. Once he thought of one, he sat up straighter and smiled at the memory.

"_Troy Alexander Bolton put me down!" A 19 year old version of Sharpay shrieked, punching Troy's back as he spun them around in circles. After Sharpay had made fun of his basketball skills, Troy had thrown her over his shoulder. He knew that she got dizzy easily so he kept on spinning them around. "Troy!" She giggled, bunching his shirt up in her fists. She was wailing her legs around, trying to get down. _

"_Not today Payday. This time you really hurt my feelings." He explained, chuckling at her attempts to get free. He playfully smacked her butt, to which she gasped in response, and laid her down on the ground, hovering over her. She reached her hand up and gently brushed the bangs out of his face before letting her hand cup his cheek gently. He smiled and turned his head, kissing the palm of her hand. _

"_You're perfect." She breathed out, tracing his face with her finger. She traced the outline of his jaw, up to his eyebrows, down the slant of his nose and across his cheeks. She giggled, taking her hand away form his face. He shook his head and gave her a look asking 'What's so funny?' "The stubble on your face tickles." She said, giggling some more when he leaned down and rubbed his left cheek on her left one. He rested his head on her shoulder, kissing her neck softly. She closed her eyes, loving the feeling of his soft lips on her skin. _

"_You're beautiful Payday- don't let anyone tell you otherwise." He said softly, planting one more kiss on her neck before looking her straight in the eye. The love and adoration that was shining through his beautiful blue eyes made Sharpay absolutely sure that this was definitely the man that she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. What she didn't know was that Troy was thinking the exact same thing and had a black, velvet box in his red and white backpack in his dorm room. _

"I knew from that moment on that your mother and I were going to spend the rest of our lives together. No matter what." Troy finished, smiling at the wall across from him, vividly remembering that day. Tressa, who had tears in her eyes, reached over and wiped the tears from her father's cheek. He looked over at her and grabbed her hand, kissing the back of her hand. "I love you Tressa. Very much. And I know that if your mother was here now she would love you just as much as I do." He looked her in the eye, wanting to her to take in what he was saying.

Tressa sniffled, wiping her hand across her cheek. "I know daddy." She wrapped her arms around his torso, resting her head on his shoulder. "You don't have to tell me that twice." She smiled, closing her eyes.

He pulled back and kissed her forehead before standing up, pulling her up by her hands. "You look beautiful." He said after glancing at her.

She blushed, ducking her head down. "Really? It's not too much?"

Troy shook his head, twirling her around once. "Not at all."

* * *

"Dad!" Tressa shrieked, pulling her bowl of chocolate chip ice cream towards herself. "This is my ice cream!" She whined, taking a bite of it while making sure he didn't get his spoon anywhere nears it.

Troy chuckled, pulling back his spoon and putting the bite of her ice cream in his mouth. "Yum!" He smiled victoriously, dipping his spoon into his own vanilla ice cream. He took a huge bite, licking the spoon clean. He noticed how Tressa's smile dropped and she seemed a bit nervous or worried. "What's wrong Tress?" He asked as he pushed his bowl to the side.

She stirred her ice cream around in her bowl. She looked up at him and smiled slightly. "You promise you won't get mad?" She asked.

Troy nodded his head, grabbing her hand from across the table. "I promise baby girl. What's wrong?"

"I'm, uh, thinking about not playing basketball at East High. I really want to focus on drama and the scholastic decathlon." She explained, fearing that he might be mad at her.

Instead, Troy smiled and gave her hand a squeeze. "That's ok Tress. You are free to be whoever you want to be. Do not try to impress anybody. Do what you love to do and don't worry about anything else." He said.

Tressa looked up at him and smiled, relieved. "Thank you daddy." She leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Don't ever be afraid to talk to me Tress. I'm always here for you."

She smiled. "I know. And that's one of the reasons why you're the best dad in the world."

* * *

**Well…? I'm really excited to write this story! I want to know what you guys think- and be honest. **

**I'm planning on updating 'Reflection' this weekend when I have time. Too much work and I was excited about getting this story up. **

**Thank you!....Review! **


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you guys sooo much for the awesome reviews!!! I love'em! **

**I'm going to try and add a flashback in every chapter so you'll still read about Sharpay!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize. **

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"Oh Tressa dear." Troy sang, barging into her room the next morning. He chuckled as he heard her groan and wave her hand at him, telling him to leave. He walked over to her bed and sat down on the edge near her feet. He grabbed her ankle that was sticking out from the covers and started tickling her foot. She tried not to laugh but let out a little giggle as Troy smiled victoriously.

Flipping over to lay on her back, she pulled her foot away from him while running a hand threw her messy hair. "You are so annoying." She announced, sitting up to lean against the headboard of her bed. Instead of insulting her back, he rolled his eyes. Tressa looked at the clock and sighed; 6:45 am. "It's too early!" She lay back down and brought the covers up over her head. "I don't wanna go to school!"

"Too bad, baby girl, you have to go! Just look on the bright side- I'll be in the same school as you!" He said happily, a huge smile plastered on his face.

Tressa groaned. "Oh God. What did I do to deserve this punishment?"

Troy stood up, hand on his hips in a comical manner, and gasped dramatically. "Excuse me? I have feelings to you know." He said matter-of-factly.

Tressa sat up, the blankets lying on her lap. She rolled her eye at her fathers' immaturity before flinging the covers off of her and standing up. "I'm sorry daddy, but what teenager wants their dad working at their high school?" She asked rhetorically. When Troy didn't answer, she grabbed her towel off of her desk chair and walked to the bathroom that was adjoined to her room. "I'll be down soon." She closed the door, leaving Troy standing there to shake his head at her dramatics. She opened the door and threw a smile at him. "I love you daddy."

Troy's face broke out in a smile as he walked to the door. "Love you too sunshine. I'll see you down stairs."

Twenty minutes later, Tressa skipped down the stairs and into the kitchen, her beautiful curls left down, and hanging over her shoulders. The navy blue three quarter length, V-neck sweater made her gorgeous baby blue eyes pop and matching it with a pair of short shorts and blue converse. She carelessly threw her purple backpack on the floor before walking over to Troy, who was pouring himself a bowl of Cheerios, and kissed his cheek. He smiled down at her and grabbed a bowl and spoon for her. Walking over to the island counter, she decided on Cocoa Puffs and poured herself a bowl, with milk of course, and sat down. Troy joined her after adding milk to his bowl and sat opposite her. As tradition, he read the newspaper while she read the latest gossip magazine. All of a sudden, Tressa's eyes bugged out and she dropped her spoon. "O-M-G!" she shrieked, reading the magazine article over again.

Troy rolled his eyes and bent the corner of the newspaper down to look at her. "What is it?"

"Nick Jonas and Selena Gomez broke up!" She exclaimed, mouth agape as she stared at the magazine page. "What?! How could they?! They were so cute together!"

"Oh no." Troy said in a monotone voice. Tressa looked up at him just in time for him to flip the corner of the newspaper back up. "How could they?" he added sarcastically, not catching the glare that Tressa was sending his way.

"Dad?! You just don't understand! I need to call Lacey!" She pulled the phone out of her pocket and quickly called her best friend. "OMG! Did you hear?...I know right?....I can't believe it…my dad just doesn't understand the importance of this!" She rolled her eyes at the mention of her dad. "I know right?! Listen, I'll see you in a few minutes. I'll go to your house to pick you up! Kk…Adios chica!" Tressa shoved her phone back in her pocket and set her bowl in the sink. After grabbing her back pack, she walked over to Troy and hugged him from behind and kissed his cheek. "Lacey and I are going to walk to school today. I'll see you there!" Troy placed a kiss on her forehead and gave her a quick hug.

"Be careful baby girl." He warned, cocking an eyebrow at her. She just rolled her eyes at his over protectiveness.

"I know daddy. We will." She texted Lacey and told her she was leaving her house now. "Bye dad. I love you."

"Love you too princess. Behave."

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"Tress," Lacey whined, linking her arm with her best friend. The two walked down the stairs of Lacey's' front porch and started walking in the direction of the school. "It's so early. I wish school didn't start today." She grabbed her to-go bottle of orange juice and took a sip.

Tressa agreed, nodding her head. "I know right? At least you don't have your dad working at the school." She sighed. She could just picture her father spying on her in the hallways, making sure no boys would go near her.

"But aren't you and your dad close?" Lacey asked, glancing at Tressa.

"We are, but come on? Going to the same school? I'm never going to get a boyfriend." She sighed again, rolling her eyes in annoyance.

Lacey giggled as they walked up the front stairs of East High. "Yes you will. Your dad just has to learn that you're growing up. Can you imagine how hard it must be for him, seeing his little girl entering high school? It's been you and him your whole life. He's just worried that some guy is going to hurt you." She smiled at her, hoping it would make her feel better. They made it to their lockers and entered the combination.

"I know. I love him and I know he's overprotective. Maybe it won't be too bad." She smiled as she hung her coat up on a hook. Just as she said that, Troy walked up to her and hugged her.

"Hey baby girl." He kissed her forehead. Tressa pushed him away and wiped her forehead.

"Dad? Please- not in school." She looked around to make sure nobody saw. Troy winced at her words and dropped his hands to his side.

"Alright." He smiled a small smile at her. "I'll see you at home then." He turned around and walked towards the gym.

"What a way to crush the guy Tress." Lacey commented, fixing her lip gloss in her mirror hanging in her locker. Tressa glared at her before slamming her locker shut.

"I know." Tressa sighed, looking down the hallway where her father disappeared to. "I feel terrible. I'll talk to him after school." She sighed sadly before the two of them walked to their homeroom. After picking the seat in the back near the window, Tressa and Lacey took their seats, talking randomly. The teacher came in and took attendance before letting the class talk until the bell rang. Lacey turned around in her seat to face Tressa.

"So…what class do you have next?" She asked, sucking on a cherry lollipop.

Tressa pulled out her schedule and scanned over it, looking for her second period class. She groaned and set her head in her hands. "Gym."

Lacey giggled, taking the schedule from her friend. "That sucks. But we have the afternoon classes together." She smiled. The bell rang and the class quickly ran out, hoping to meet up with their friends before their next class started. Tress and Lacey were the last to leave, walking slowly down the hallways as well. Lacey walked to the gym with Tressa since her class was next to the gym. "I'll see you later sweets." She walked down the hallway and called over her shoulder "Talk to him Tress!"

Tressa rolled her eyes and walked into the gym, taking a seat on the bleachers. Because it was the first day of gym class, the students didn't have to change. She climbed up the steps until she was sitting on the bench in the third row. She smiled politely at people before pulling her book out of her bag. She sighed happily and opened it up to the page she left off on, taking out her bookmark. She was so engrossed in her book that she didn't even notice that her dad walked out, waiting to take attendance for his class. Tressa heard him start talking and quickly closed her book, giving him her full attention. He eventually stopped talking about the rules and conducts and told the class they could shoot some hoops if they wanted. Tressa saw him walk into his office and stood up, grabbing her bag and following him. She knocked on the door frame, since the door was open, and smiled as he looked up at her. "Can I talk to you for a sec?" She asked

He smiled and motioned for her to take a seat. She smiled and sat down, setting her bag next to the chair on the ground. "What's up?"

Tressa linked her fingers together, setting her hands in her lap. She looked down nervously before glancing up at him. "I'm sorry about the way I treated you earlier. It was wrong and rude. I love you daddy." She explained, not knowing how much her words made Troy feel.

Troy shook his head. "It's ok Tress. You're right; no one wants their parents working in the same school. I'll try to give you your space and not embarrass you. But when it comes to boys, I can't promise anything." He teased, earning a giggle from Tressa. "Seriously though, I know what it was like having a parent working in the same school. It sucked." He chuckled. "I'm sorry Tress. It's just hard seeing you grow up." He smiled sadly.

Tressa smiled knowingly and walked over to him, pulling him in to a hug. "I know daddy. But you should have seen it coming." She pulled away from him. "I'm sorry for treating you like crap earlier." She whispered.

Troy kissed her forehead. "It's ok, really. I love you."

"Love you too daddy."

The bell rang and Tressa quickly grabbed her bag, rushing to the door. She turned around to face Troy. "Did you drive here today or walk?"

"I drove why?"

"If I meet you here, will you drive me home? I want to tell you about my day." She smiled and left the room, not even waiting for an answer.

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"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Honors English." A tall lady with blonde hair said as she walked into the classroom. The students quieted down, finding their seats and taking out their notebooks. The teacher set her bag down on the front desk and took out her class folder. "And because this is Honors, I'm going to give you an assignment on the first day." She exclaimed, earning groans from the class. She simply rolled her eyes, getting the same reaction every year. "Yeah, yeah." She joked. Tressa giggled. She loved to write; whether it was fiction or not. The teacher, known as Mrs. Johnson, started passing out a sheet of papers that described the essay. "Now, this story is just an introductory. I want to see how you guys write; what your strengths and weaknesses are." She finished passing out the papers and took a seat on the front desk. "Basically this paper is going to be about who inspires you the most. Who you look up to as your hero. I want to you to state why you look up to that person. What does he or she do that makes you inspired. This essay can be as long as you want. Just make sure it's longer than 1 page." She looked around the class. "Any questions?"

Tressa looked around the classroom, seeing if any of the students would raise their hand. She re-read the assignment and smiled happily. She knew exactly who she was going to write about; her father. She was the one person she was most inspired by. Even though he was a single parent to her, he managed to play both the mother and the father in her life. He would always be home in time for her to come home, always was there to talk when she needed too and was always good for a hug. She jumped slightly in her seat, clapping her hands as she did. The teacher noticed and made a note to talk to Tressa after class.

For the rest of the class, everyone introduced themselves and talked about what they thought the class would be like. Soon enough, the bell rang and everyone left the room quickly. She took her time, since it was her last class and her dad would wait for her. She carefully set the assignment sheet in her folder and placed it in her bag. Once she started to walk to the door, the teacher called her back.

"Excuse me, Miss. Bolton?" She asked. Tressa turned around to face her and smiled. "Yes Mrs. Johnson?" The teacher waved her over to her desk and Tressa obliged, sitting down on the chair in front of the desk. "I noticed that you seemed very excited to start the assignment. Do you like to write?"

Tressa smiled happily. "I love to write. My mother used to write all the time. She would write all the time, according to my dad. Writing is a safe haven for me. I can create anything I want in my stories; like if I feel down, I can create a character that's happy and full of life which makes me happy. Sometimes I get so engrossed in my writing, that I don't even realize my dad is calling me for dinner or my phone is ringing. I just tone everything out." She finished, feeling much more relaxed.

The teacher smiled knowingly, nodding that she was paying attention. "Sounds like you've got the writing bug." The two giggled. "I can't wait to read your writing Tressa." She said politely.

Tressa blushed and ducked her head. "Thank you. I can't wait to get started." She said as she stood up and adjusted her bag on her shoulder. "Is that all Mrs. Johnson?"

"That's it. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yeah, see you tomorrow."

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Tressa was walking, more like jogging, to the gym to meet up with Troy. She couldn't wait to tell him about the writing assignment. She was so excited to get there that she didn't notice the green-eyed boy turning the corner. Her and the boy collided with each other, both landing on the ground. She 'omph-ed' as she landed on her butt, her books scattering everywhere. The boy landed on the ground as well, the flyers in his hands flying everywhere. Tressa gasped as she put a hand to her mouth. "I'm so sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going." She frantically cried, helping him pick up his flyers.

The boy chuckled before standing up. He offered his hand to her and she gladly accepted it. He lifted her up with no problem, not removing his hand from hers. Tressa looked at the boy and smiled. "Thank you." She giggled, handing him his books.

The green eyed boy took them from her. "Thank you. I'm Aidan."

Tressa kneeled down on the ground and started picking up her books. "I'm Tressa." She looked up at him as she introduced herself before returning her attention to her books. Aidan kneeled down and helped her. He pulled her up again and handed them to her. "Thanks. I appreciate the help." She smiled shyly, noticing just how good- looking he was. He had short brown hair, spiked on the top and his eyes were the most gorgeous shade of green that she had ever seen. The crooked smile and the way his mouth leaned to the side as he spoke were adorable along with his prominent dimples. Tressa shook her head, hoping he that he hadn't caught her gazing longingly at him.

He smiled at her, his eyes twinkling. "It was no problem. I hope you didn't injure yourself on that fall." He teased, earning a flirtatious giggle from the beautiful girl standing in front of him. He smiled at the sound and stuffed his hands in his pockets, rocking on his heels. "So, I'll see you around?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow.

Tressa tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled. "Sure. Around." He winked before turning around and walking towards the front door of the school. Once he was out of sight, Tressa started doing a happy dance, while saying 'Oh my gosh.' Over and over again. She tightened her grip on her books and ran to the gym, not wanting her dad to be worried about her. Once she made it to the gym, she rushed into the office and screamed loudly, flinging herself at her Aunt. "Aunt Gabi!" She shrieked as she hugged her tightly. Gabriella laughed and hugged her back. Tressa pulled back and looked to the right of Gabriella. "Uncle Ryan!" She shrieked again, wrapping her arms tightly around his torso. Ryan laughed as well, spinning her around in a circle.

Ryan pulled away and held Tressa out an arms length away form him. "Look at you." He said, smiling. "You're getting prettier and prettier each time I see you." He stated which had Tressa blushing slightly.

"Thank you." She smiled, walking over to Troy and giving him a hug. "Hey daddy!"

"Hello Princess. How was your day?" He asked after placing a kiss to the top of her head.

She hid a smile, thinking about Aidan. "It was good." She said and suddenly her face lit up. "OMG! Dad?! My English teacher assigned a writing assignment already and I can't wait to start it!"

Gabriella smiled proudly. "That's my niece." Tressa giggled before walking over to her and gave her another hug. She leaned up and whispered, "I need to talk to you." Gabriella smiled questioningly before realizing she needed to talk to a woman. Tressa turned to Troy. "Can Aunt Gabi and I walk home? I need to talk to her about something."

Troy frowned slightly. "What is it you need to talk to her about and not me?" He asked, slightly hurt that she didn't trust him.

Tressa rolled her eyes, catching his sadness. "Dad, I just need to talk to a woman. I promise I'll talk to you when I'm ready." She explained.

Troy smiled at Gabriella, knowing that Tressa needed a mother- like figure in her life and knew that Gabriella was the best person to be just that. Ryan smiled sadly, Tressa reminding him of Sharpay so much.

"_Ryan?!" A newly14 year old Sharpay shrieked, rushing down the hallway looking for him. She ran into Ryan's room, sitting down on the bed. Ryan turned away from his computer and rushed over to his sister who was crying into her hands. He pulled her in for a comforting hug, waiting for her to calm down before questioning her. _

_A few minutes later, Sharpay pulled away and wiped her eyes and cheeks dry. She looked up at Ryan and smiled slightly. "I need to talk to mom." She said sadly. Their parents were always away on a business trip or something, never being there when they were needed. _

_Ryan wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "You can talk to me Sharpie." He whispered._

"_Not about this Ry. This is something I need to talk to a girl about." She sniffled, grabbing a tissue from his night stand and blew her nose. "But since mom's not here, I need to talk to you." She folded her hands on her lap nervously. "You're not going to want to hear this Ry." _

"_Trust me Sharpie. I'm your brother and when you need someone to turn to, I'll always be here." He assured her. _

"_Well," She started, fidgeting nervously on the bed. "I kinda got my period just now." She muttered, her hands starting to sweat from the nerves. Ryan threw on a grossed out look before realizing that his sister needed him since their mother wasn't there. He pulled her in for another comforting hug. "My tummy hurts and I'm bloated." She cried. _

"_I'll go to the drug store for you and buy the necessities. You stay here and put a heating pad on your stomach and relax." He said softly, standing up while grabbing his wallet and keys. _

_Sharpay stood up too and grabbed his wrist as he turned to leave. "You don't have to Ry. I don't want you to go and buy my 'Womanly' products." She said, blushing when she said 'womanly products.' _

"_Sharpie, come on. You're going to lie down on the couch and chill out. I don't mind buying you this stuff." They made it down the stairs and Ryan kissed her forehead. "I'm your brother and I'm always here for you." _

_Sharpay hugged him and kissed his cheek. "You're the bestest brother in the world." _

_15 minutes later, Ryan walked into the drug store and walked to the feminine aisle. He felt awkward but knew that Sharpay needed someone there for him. He stood in front of the wide selection and scratched his head. What on earth? He glanced over all of the different brands and sizes and just hid his face with his hat. He quickly grabbed the cheapest bag of pads and box of tampons before making his way to the aspirin aisle. He picked up a bottle of Midol before walking to the front counter. After setting the items on the counter, he pulled out a twenty and gave it to the cashier who looked at him funny. "My sister." He said and the cashier smiled._

_She smiled softly at him. "I've never seen any guy buy these for their family or friends." _

"_Oh well, she's not feeling up to getting them herself and our parents are out. I wouldn't make her come out here and buy them herself." He explained, gathering the change in his hand. She gave him the bag and smiled._

"_Have a good day." _

"_You too." He arrived home another 15 minutes later and quietly walked into the living room. He set the products on the coffee table and gently woke Sharpay up form her nap. She opened her eyes and smiled. "I have your stuff." He handed it to her and she stood up, walking towards the bathroom. _

_She hugged him before she left. "Thanks Ry." _

Ryan snapped out of his flashback and smiled softly at Tressa. Troy noticed the faraway look on Ryan's face and sent him a looking. Ryan shook his head, telling him never mind. "Go ahead. I'll see you later." Troy said, hugging both Gabriella and Tressa. The pair said bye to Ryan too and left the school.

"Just a flashback." Ryan explained about his faraway look. Troy nodded his head, knowing exactly what he was feeling. Ryan sat down in the chair. "How are you holding up Troy?"

Troy smiled a small smile. "Alright I guess. Having Tressa around makes things easier." He said, smiling softly at the thought of his precious daughter. "How about you?"

"The same. Gabi's been great. And so have Adam and Kylie." He said, speaking of his twin children. They were 7 years old and looked exactly like Gabriella. They had her dark, curly hair and gorgeous smile. Although Adam did have Ryan's blue eyes. "I just wanted to come and see Tressa. Is she doing ok?"

"Tressa's doing just fine. Whenever she asks about Sharpay, I always tell her some stories. I think she's happy to see you guys though."

Ryan smiled. "We wanted to come and see you guys. Is there anything we can help you with?"

Troy smiled and rolled his eyes. "Thanks man, but I'm doing ok. Where are you guys staying?" He asked. Ryan and Gabi live in California after moving there during college.

"We'll find a hotel somewhere around here." He shrugged his shoulders as if it was no big deal. Troy shook his head furiously. "No. You're going to stay with us. Where are Adam and Kylie?"

"We dropped them off at Maria's house." He answered, talking about Gabi's mom that still lives in Albuquerque.

"Well, let's go get them and Maria and have a barbeque at my house." Troy smiled, grabbing his papers and coat before the two left the room.

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"So," Gabi smiled, wrapping an arm around Tressa's shoulders. "What did you want to talk about dearie?"

"Well, I don't know how to tell my dad this and I certainly don't know how to talk about it with him." She explained, trying to procrastinate on her big news.

"Tress, you don't have to be embarrassed to talk to me about whatever you have to tell me. You can trust me."

Tressa smiled a faltered smile and took a deep breath. "I got my period this morning. I didn't tell my dad because I didn't exactly know how too." She explained. She was extremely embarrassed and uncomfortable about talking about this.

Gabi smiled excitedly before embracing Tressa. "Tress! This is amazing! This is a huge deal in a woman's life. I'm so happy for you." She smiled at Tressa before noticing that Tressa was frowning. "What's wrong sweetie?"

Tressa looked up at Gabi, her eyes filled with tears. "I wish my mom was here for this. I miss her so much Aunt Gabi that it hurts." She choked out before sobbing into Gabi's shoulder. Gabi gasped before wrapping her arms around her niece, whispering comforting words in the ear. "I mean, I love daddy and everything but there are some things that I need my mother for. And this is one of them." Tressa added, pulling away from Gabi and wiping her eyes.

"I know sweetie. I miss your mother just as much as you do. She was amazing woman and you remind me of her every time I see you." Gabi explained as she wiped Tressa's cheek.

"I do?"

Gabi smiled softly. "You do." She gave her a quick hug before they continued walking. "Come on; let's get to the drug store. I'll buy the feminine stuff for you." She kissed the top of Tressa's head.

"There was something else I wanted to talk to you about Aunt Gabi." She smiled dreamily as she thought of Aidan. "My dad would kill me if he heard this." Gabi gave her a look telling her to continue, which she did. "Well, I kind of ran into someone today as I was walking to the gym. He is so cute. His name is Aidan and he has the most amazing green eyes I have ever seen." She sighed happily, not noticing the huge smile that broke out on her Aunts' face. "He said he'll see me around."

"Is he a nice guy?" Gabi asked.

"Super nice Aunt Gabi. I hope I get to see him again sometime." She giggled girlishly getting a laugh from Gabi.

"You are so cute Tressa." She laughed as they walked into the store. Gabi led her to the girl aisle and told her how each one works and told her which one would work best for her. After getting a package of pads, the two picked up some Midol and quickly paid for them before returning home. They heard laughter coming from the living room and Gabi walked in as Tressa ran up the stairs, hiding her 'stuff.' Troy noticed and followed her up. He knocked on her door and entered when she said 'come in.'

Tressa just exited her bathroom and sat down on her bed, watching as Troy sat next to her. "Are you ok Tress?" He asked, concern lacing his voice. "You always talk to me." He added and Tressa could have sworn she heard a bit of sadness.

"Daddy, everything is ok." She said and took a deep breath, about to tell her father her female problems. "Don't get grossed out ok?" He nodded his head. "I got my period this morning. I didn't exactly know how to tell you, but Aunt Gabi talked to me and made me feel a little more comfortable. I didn't think you would want to take me shopping for, well, you know." She smiled awkwardly as Troy stared at her, mouth agape. "Are you going to say anything?" She asked after a few minutes of silence.

Troy shook out of his trance. "I'm sorry." He closed his eyes, thinking of what he was going to say. "You're right, this is a little uncomfortable." He chuckled, an attempt to clear the air. Tressa giggled. "But, I'm our father. You can tell me anything, even if it's a serious female problem. And it's official." He said, tears building up in his eyes. "My

little girl is officially grown up." He smiled at her and she hugged him.

"Daddy, you're going to make me cry." She giggled as she pulled away form him. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier. It's not exactly easy for me to tell you about stuff like this." She explained.

"I know baby girl. You think it's easy for me to hear this?" He joked which Tressa rolled her eyes at. "But seriously, I love you and you can trust me with anything." He finished, standing up and walking to the door. "Uncle Ryan and Aunt Gabi are going to stay with us for a few days alright?"

Tressa nodded her head. "Are Adam and Kylie here?" Her eyes lit up, excited to see her cousins.

Troy chuckled and shook his head at her. "Yeah. They're down stairs."

Tressa jumped off the bed, wanting to go down stairs. Before she left she wrapped her arms around her fathers' torso. "Thanks daddy. I love you."

Troy smiled, wrapping his own arms around her. "I love you too baby girl."

Troy watched her run down the stairs excitedly and heard his niece and nephew scream when they saw her. He leaned against the doorframe and smiled softly. Her hyperness was another reminder of Sharpay.

"_Troy!" 23 year old Sharpay called form the living room of their newest apartment. He rolled his eyes but walked into the room anyway. He smiled as he saw her on the computer, looking up furniture for their new home. _

"_Yes my dear?" He joked, pulling up a seat next to her and planting a kiss on the side of his fiancées' head, he looked at the computer screen. _

"_Isn't this couch gorgeous?" She asked, completely in awe. She pointed to a black leather couch. _

_Troy chuckled and nodded his head. "It's perfect." _

_She turned her head to him excitedly before lunging at him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "You do?" She asked, practically jumping in the chair from excitement. _

_He laughed ago and planted a passionate kiss to her lips. "I do." _

_She squealed and started to type in her credit card number for them to deliver it. She kept bouncing in her chair as she typed. After a few minutes, the process was done and all they had to do was wait. "Done!! I can't wait to get it!" _

"_Me too, Payday, me too." _

Troy shook his head, smiling as he remembered that day. It was one of the most amazing days of his life; they officially moved in that day. He pushed himself off of the doorway of Tressa's room and closed her door. He jogged down the stairs to meet up with his family.

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**Well…there's another chapter finished! I personally loved this chapter. I'm sorry if this made anyone feel uncomfortable about the 'period' talk. Just wanted to show her growing up and bonding with Gabriella! **

**I'll try to update 'Reflection' this weekend. I have about half of it typed up so far! **

**Please review!! ******


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you so much! The reviews make me so happy! ******

**I hope you enjoy this chappy!**

**Warning- It's kind of sad! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize. **

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"Bed time Tress." Troy called out from the kitchen as he finished up the dishes.

Tressa groaned as she glanced at the clock. It was ten at night and she just finished watching one of her favorite shows; CSI. Her little cousins, Adam and Kylie, were asleep, one on each side of her, leaning their heads on her shoulders. Kylie had her tiny thumb in her mouth and Adam was snoring slightly. Ryan and Gabi decided to go for a late night walk and Tressa agreed to put Adam and Kylie to bed. "Alright daddy. Can you help me with your nephew?" She called back quietly, listening as she heard the kitchen sink turn off and Troy's footsteps approaching.

Troy smiled softly as he saw his daughter cuddling with his niece and nephew. She was smiling gently at them while stroking their hair soothingly. He walked over and carefully picked up Adam, settling Adam on his hip while wrapping his arms around him. Tressa picked up Kylie, making sure not to wake her in the process. Together they carried the twins up the stairs and walked into one of the guest bedrooms. They had two twin beds, one on each side of the wall, and two dressers. The kids' toys were scattered around along with their stuffed animals. Troy and Tressa placed them on their appropriate bed and kissed them good night. Tressa turned on the night light and they left the room, closing the door quietly behind them.

Troy pulled his daughter in for hug. "Goodnight Tress. Sleep tight." He kissed the top of her head.

"I will daddy. Nighty night." She leaned up and kissed his cheek. She walked into the room and called out "See you in the morning." Then she closed her door.

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"_I'm going to bed sweetie. Are you coming soon?" A very pregnant 25 year old Sharpay asked her husband, Troy Bolton, of 2 years. He was lazily slouching on the couch, watching some re-run basketball game with a bowl of chips by his side. _

"_Soon baby." He said through a mouthful of barbeque chips, crumbs spilling out of his mouth. Sharpay looked disgusted as she waddled over to him. _

"_What have I told you about eating with your mouthful?" She sighed, rubbing his hand that had found its way to her bulging stomach. He smiled boyishly as he sat up against the back of the couch. He pulled her closer to him and placed a kiss on her temple. _

"_I'm sorry Payday." He started making soothing circles on her stomach to which to closed her eyes. "How are you feeling? And be honest." _

_She giggled, leaning her head on his strong shoulder. "Tired. Like I said, I'm going to bed." She planted a soft kiss on his lips before standing up, automatically setting a hand on her back and the other on her stomach. She started walking towards their room but stopped when she heard Troy chuckle form behind her. She turned around and raised an eyebrow. "What?"_

"_You look like a penguin." He burst out into laughter, laying a hand on his stomach._

_Sharpay glared at him before thinking of an idea. "Yeah, well, have fun sleeping on the couch." She smirked as he stopped laughing, eyes wide. She turned around and walked to the bedroom, slamming the door behind her. _

_Troy scurried off of the couch and slid across the floor, hoping it would make it quicker to get to the room. Instead, his sock got stuck on a nail and he fell flat on his face. "Ow." He muttered putting a hand to his head. After ripping his sock off, he stood up and ran to the door. "Pay wait. I was just kidding. Please don't make me sleep on the couch." He pleaded through the door, knocking on it repeatedly. _

_Sharpay giggled from inside as she opened the door. "No. That's what you get for making fun of me in my very emotional state." She closed the door in his face and shuffled into the bed, getting comfy under the comforters. _

_Troy sighed and silently mimicked her outside the room, walking to the couch. "Hello best friend." He muttered, throwing himself into a lying position on the couch. He threw a hand over his eyes as the other fished around for the remote. _

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_Sharpay woke up at 2:36 in the morning with pains shooting out through her stomach. She sat up quickly, placing her hands on her bulging stomach. "Oh gosh." She squeezed her eyes tightly shut until the pain subsided. She felt that the bed was wet and realized that she was in labor. She carefully got out of bed and waddled to the front room. She shook Troy's shoulder violently, and if she wasn't in any pain she would have laughed as he screamed girlishly. He wiped the sleep out of his eyes and looked up at a very flushed Sharpay. _

_He sat up quickly, placing a hand on her back and one on her stomach. Pay, what's wrong?" _

"_I'm in labor you idiot." She hissed, closing her eyes as another painful contraction hit. "Get. Me. To. The. Hospital. Now." She said through closed teeth and pain. Troy gulped nervously before putting his shoes on and helped Sharpay put some on. He grabbed the bag, which he and Sharpay had prepared ahead of time, and ushered her out of the house. They made it to the hospital ten minutes later with a pretty pissed off Sharpay. They walked up to the receptionist desk. "My wife's in labor." Troy said frantically. "Get me a doctor and some medicine now!" _

"_Please fill out these papers." The secretary said. Sharpay glared at Troy, silently telling him that she would castrate him if they didn't get a doctor. _

_Troy turned back to the secretary. "Please. Get her a doctor now. I'll fill out the papers later. My life is important to me ma'am." He pleaded; sweat starting to form on his hairline. _

"_I'll take it form here Anne." Dr. Hyler said as she approached the frantic couple. Dr. Hyler's the family doctor for the Boltons. She told the couple that she would be there for the birth and took care of the pregnancy throughout them. "Alright Sharpay, let's get you to a room and we'll hook you up to the machines and soon enough we can get that little Bolton out of you." She smiled, gesturing to her stomach. _

"_Yeah that's freaking amazing. Let's all hold hands and skip down the freaking hallway." Sharpay added sarcastically. "I need to get this baby out now. Troy if they don't get this baby out now I swear to God I will kill you slowly and painfully." She threatened menacingly. _

_Troy's eyes grew even bigger and he looked at Dr. Hyler. "Do something! Please." _

_Dr. Hyler laughed as a nurse walked over to them with a wheel chair. Troy helped Sharpay sit down in it before wheeling her to the room the doctor was taking them to. After a few minutes, Sharpay was hooked up to a few machines that showed the baby's heartbeat and the contractions. At this moment, she was in the middle of a contraction, breathing heavily. Troy was sitting in a chair on her right side, grasping her hand. "I'm so proud of you Payday. You're doing so well." He kissed her temple. _

_Sharpay managed to smile shortly at Troy before another contraction hit. She closed her eyes, squeezing the life out of Troy's hand. "Holy shit." She sighed, taking a few deep breaths. "That one was painful."_

"_Yeah I know." Troy muttered, shaking his hand out. "I'm going to call everyone. Do you think you can handle a few minutes without me?" _

"_I don't know dumb ass, can I?" She asked sarcastically. "You're not the one having the baby and contractions." _

"_I'll take that as a yes." _

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"_Ok push on the next contraction Sharpay." The doctor announced from her position near Sharpay legs. Sharpay nodded fearfully before grasping Troys' hand and catching his gaze. _

_He smiled reassuringly and that's all Sharpay needed to get through the delivery. She pushed on the first contraction. Her beautiful face contorted into pain as she felt like she was dying. No amount of medicine in the world could cover up the pain. Troy felt helpless on the side. Holding her hand was not doing much at all for her and he wished he was in her position. She laid back down after pushing and took a few deep breaths, her grip on Troys' hand loosening slightly. "You're doing great Pay." He whispered to her, kissing her temple. "I love you." _

"_Love you too." She whispered back, feeling a surge of pain shoot throughout her head. Instead of saying anything, she pushed on the next contraction. After a few more pushes, the couple heard a loud cry emit throughout the room. Sharpay fell back against the pillows tiredly. Troy's face broke out into a grin and he looked at Sharpay happily. She smiled at him slightly before passing out, head falling to the side and her eyes closing. "Pay?" Troy called out frantically, looking to the doctor frantically. _

_The doctor hurried to her side as the nurses cleaned their baby. She felt for a pulse before paging another doctor. "We're going to need you to leave Troy." She said quickly, rushing to do some more work on Sharpay. _

"_What. No. I can't leave her. Pay?" He asked, shaking her shoulders gently. The doctor started pulling him out of the room and he tried to resist. "What's going on?" He asked as the doctor managed to pull him out. "We're not sure. We need to wait in the waiting room." _

_Troy shook his head. "No please. Don't make me leave please." He started crying, trying to walk to the room. "Pay?" He kept screaming her name._

"MOM?" Tressa screamed, waking up from her nightmare, sitting up in her bed. She started sobbing, bringing her legs up to her chest and burying her head in her arms that were lying on her knees. Seconds later, Troy ran into the room, wrapping his arms around her as he sat on the bed. She lifted her head and wrapped her arms around him, burying her head in his shoulder. "Daddy." She sobbed.

"I know baby girl." He whispered. He leaned his head on top of hers. He gently started rocking her back and forth while placing a kiss on her head.

"It was so sad daddy. I saw her as she was dying." She cried, holding onto her father tighter. "It hurts so much."

Troy picked her up and placed her on his lap as he rubbed her back soothingly. "It's ok baby. Just let it out." He rocked her back and forth, trying not to let his own tears fall down his cheeks even though some did. "I know exactly how hard it is Tressa."

Tressa slowly started to calm down after a few minutes. Once she had gotten her breathing back in control, she lifted her head off of Troy's shoulder and looked up at him. "It was so scary. I saw her. She was giving birth to me. You were so happy, daddy. But then she just passed out. Oh my gosh." She hugged him tighter, hoping that would make her feel better. "What happened daddy? What happened to her?"

Troy sighed, knowing that this day would come sooner or later. He held his precious daughter close to him as he explained. "I'm not even entirely sure. Something happened with her heart. The birth was too much for her to handle and she couldn't breath." He kissed her head. "Don't ever blame yourself Tressa. None of this is your fault. Your mother and I love you very much and we were so excited when you were born. You're the best thing that has ever happened to your mother and I." He explained, continuing to rub her back soothingly.

"I know daddy. I love you so much. Even when sometimes it doesn't seem like I do. You're my hero." She kissed his cheek before laying her head on his shoulder again. They stayed in that position for a few more minutes. "Can I sleep in your room with you, daddy?"

Troy smiled brightly. "You haven't asked me that in years." He chuckled, hearing her giggle. "Of course you can." She stood up and grabbed her knitted blanket that her grandma made for her. She also grabbed her stuffed monkey that Troy had bought her for her first birthday. The two made it to Troys' room and laid down. "Good night Tressa."

Tressa laid her head on Troys' shoulder. "Good night Daddy."

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Troy woke up the next morning due to his alarm clock. He slammed his fist onto it and sighed. _Another day of work_, he thought. He noticed that Tressa already left the room as he rolled over. After stretching, he made his way to the bathroom to take a quick shower. Twenty minutes later, Troy walked into the kitchen, kissing Adam and Kylie on the top of their heads, to which the little kids giggled to. He planted a kiss on Gabriella's cheek and patted Ryan on the back. "Good morning family." He said as he made himself a cup of coffee.

"Good morning Uncle Troy." Kylie smiled brightly at him. She has always been the suck up of the two. "Did you sleep ok?" She asked causing her brother to roll her eyes.

Troy picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. "I slept just fine. Did you?" She giggled loudly, causing everyone in the room to laugh. He patted her butt gently before setting her down.

"Me too Uncle Troy!" Adam exclaimed, holding his arms out. Troy chuckled before picking Adam up and throwing him over his shoulder. Adam laughed, hitting his tiny arms against Troys' back. Troy patted his butt as well before setting him down in his chair.

Gabriella giggled, trying to get her kids to eat again. "Alright, finish up your cereal you two. If you don't, daddy and I won't take you to the park later on tonight." She said sternly, watching as her kids downed their cereal.

Adam finished his first, showing his bowl to Ryan. "I finished daddy." He smiled, showing off his pearly whites.

He glanced at the doorway of the kitchen and saw Tressa walk in. "Tressa, Tressa, Tressa!" Adam exclaimed happily, holding his tiny arms out to his cousin. Tressa immediately smiled and picked him up, giving him a huge hug.

"How's my little cousin?" She asked after placing a kiss on his cheek.

"Good! Mommy and Daddy are going to take me and Kylie to the park today. But you'll be at school." He finished sadly.

"Don't forget about me Tressa." Kylie said from her seat.

Tressa giggled, picking her up after setting down Adam. "I could never forget about you Kylie." She smiled, giving her a hug. "I love you two very much." She set Kylie down in her seat. Tressa walked over to Troy and pulled him in for a hug. "I love you daddy."

"Love you too sweetie. Are you feeling better?" He whispered to her, wrapping his arms around her.

"Yeah. But I gotta go meet Lacey now." She kissed his cheek. "I'll see you later dad." Tressa grabbed her back pack and kissed everyone in the room on the cheek. "I'll see everyone later."

"Bye Tressa."

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**Ok…bad ending but needed something to end with. I hope you liked this chapter, although it was kind of sad.**

**Please review! **


	4. Chapter 4

**I want to apologize for the delay. This month had been crazy busy for me. I hope this chapter makes up for it! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize. **

**I know that I said Tressa was already 14 years old but I tweaked that. She's gong to be 13 now. Once you read this chappy you'll understand why! Enjoy! **

Tressa walked towards her locker to drop off the heavy books in her hands. Her class before lunch, math, had just ended and she couldn't wait to meet up with Lacey and her other friends. She carefully sat her books on the shelf near the top before taking her sweater off and hanging it on one of the hooks. After grabbing her books for her next few classes, she slammed the locker shut and jumped back a bit and screamed, placing a hand over her rapidly beating heart. "Holy crap." She whispered, immediately blushing as she saw Aidan's amused smile. He was casually leaning against the locker next to hers, arms crossed lazily over his chest. "You scared me."

He chuckled, shaking his head at her. Tressa noticed the way his green eyes seemed to twinkle as he laughed, making butterflies shoot throughout her stomach. "I'm sorry. I just saw you walking over here, all by your lonesome, and decided to say hi." He explained, the crooked grin on his face making Tressa smile at him.

Tressa giggled, tucking a piece of hair shyly behind her ear as she looked down. She glanced back up at him, letting her hand fall to her side. "Aw, well isn't that just so sweet of you?" she teased. He simply rolled his eyes as he grabbed the books out of her hands and tucked them under his arm. She gave him a confused look before smiling shyly. "Thank you. I'm just heading to the cafeteria."

"No problem. Let's head over now; Its Meatloaf day!" He exclaimed with fake excitement, throwing his free arm up in the air for dramatic effect. "I just really wanna get there before it runs out." He added sarcastically.

Tressa laughed, placing a hand on his arm. "Aren't you a funny one?" She asked and patted his arm before wrapping her hand around the strap of her bag.

"Can't you tell?" he joked, sending a wink in her direction causing her to giggle.

As they continued walking, an awkward silence fell over them. "Thanks for carrying my books. You didn't have to." She smiled as they reached the cafeteria. They stopped outside of it to finish up their conversation. She held her hands out and he gently placed her books in her hands.

"It was no problem at all. A pretty woman, like yourself, shouldn't have to carry them." He smiled bashfully, avoiding her gaze. She looked at him, mouth agape, as if to make sure she heard him correctly. She shook her head and smiled, again tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. She could feel the blood rushing to her cheeks, making her blush. He looked back up at her and shoved his hands into his pants' pockets. "Maybe we could eat lunch together sometime?" he asked nervously.

Tressa's smiled grew in size, if it were possible, and she nodded her head. "That sounds great."

He shot his head up to meet her gaze. "Really?" She nodded her head reassuringly and he smiled. "Alright. Tomorrow maybe?" _He's really cute when he's nervous_, Tressa thought.

"Sure. I'll meet you by my locker?" This time, he nodded his head. "Alright, I'll see you then." She smiled. What she didn't expect to happen was for Aidan to lean in and plant a kiss on her cheek. He pulled away and smiled before walking down the hall, towards his own locker. Tressa watched him go before placing a hand to her cheek. "Whoa." She whispered before walking into the cafeteria.

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"Hey daddy!" Tressa exclaimed, walking into her fathers' office. School had finally ended and Tressa was more than excited to go home and relax. After the kiss on the cheek from Aidan, her day went down hill. She noticed her dad staring off into space, obviously in his own world, not hearing her walk in. Tressa sighed. Three days from now was her 14th birthday which meant it was also the anniversary of her mothers' death as well, which of course her father took hard. Right now, he was most likely thinking about her. Tressa bowed her head and walked over to her father, wrapping her arms around him. That seemed to snap him out of his reverie. He pulled her onto his lap and kissed the top of her head. "You're thinking about her again daddy. I can tell."

Troy's smile faltered and he immediately felt guilty. _Was I that obvious?_ "I'm sorry baby girl. It's just so hard sometimes."

"You don't have to apologize dad. You're allowed to think about her. I just wish there was something I could do to cheer you up, make you feel less sad." She laid her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes.

Troy shook his head furiously. "All you have to do is walk into the room Tress. You make my day, every day." He kissed the top of her head again. "I love you baby girl. And you remind me of your mother every time I look at you. You make me so proud." He finished, giving her a hug.

"You really mean that?" She asked in a quiet voice.

"Of course I do princess."

"Thanks daddy. I love you very much."

"Hey coach." A voice said from the doorway. Both father and daughter turned towards the voice. Tressa gasped and jumped off her fathers' lap, brushing out the invisible wrinkles. Aidan walked in and leaned against one of the chairs. Troy threw his daughter a curious look, who looked as if the ground was much more interesting, before returning his attention to his student.

"What's up Aidan?" Troy asked, motioning for him to sit down. Aidan obliged and took a seat, throwing a smile towards Tressa. Troy noticed and cringed. "Have you met my _daughter_ Tressa?" Troy emphasized the word 'daughter.'

Aidan nodded his head. "Yes. I've met your beautiful daughter already."

Tressa giggled, twirling a strand of hair around her finger. She rocked on the heels of her feet while beaming. Troy winced; he was not prepared for this. Once Tressa saw the look on his face, she turned away and pretended to be searching through her bag. "Excuse me?" Troy asked, the protectiveness in his voice showing.

Aidan froze and quickly covered himself. "Well, I mean she is beautiful. She takes after her parents." He stammered, wiping his hands on his jeans. It would appear that he had never been in this situation before.

Tressa's eyes went wide, knowing her dad was going to flip for Aidan bringing up her mother. She turned around to see her father trying to hold back his emotions. "Dad." She called out softly, gaining his attention. She subtly shook her head, telling him to not mean anything by it. He nodded back and closed his eyes as a way to calm himself down. Meanwhile, Aidan was confused on the interaction between the two. _Did I say something wrong?_ Tressa smiled softly at him, silently telling him not to stress over anything and he smiled back, obviously feeling reassured from her smile. "Can I help you with something?" Troy asked Aidan after taking a few deep breaths.

Aidan nodded, nervous to be around Troy now. "Yes. I wanted to talk to you about my English class. I know it's only the beginning of the year but I want to be prepared. English isn't my strongest subject and I wanted to know if you could help me find a tutor for it." He explained. "I want to keep my grades up so I could stay on the team."

Troy closed his eyes, rubbing his hand across them as Tressa smiled shyly. "I can tutor you." She said quietly, looking at the ground.

"What?" The two asked, Troy not liking the idea and Aidan smiling at the idea. "That's not going to happen." Troy said sternly. The last thing he was going to do was let his little girl 'tutor' some teenage boy. Tressa rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Mom would agree with it." Tressa mumbled, picking up her bag and walking out of his office and into the gym. Unfortunately for her, he heard her.

"Excuse me?" Troy asked, standing up, completely is shock at the choice of words by his daughter. He walked around his desk and jogged to catch up with her. "Don't walk away from me Tressa Elizabeth." He grabbed her arm and forced her, gently, to turn around. "What you said was not necessary; especially this week Tressa and you know that."

Tressa rolled her eyes as she jerked her arm out of his hand. Troy stepped back, shocked by her sudden attitude. "I was just stating a fact. Mom would let me tutor him. You just don't know how to let go and let me grow up." Tressa said harshly. She mustered up the harshest glare she could and threw it at her father.

"That's not true." Troy said in a quiet voice. He was shocked by the sudden attitude coming from his daughter. _Where is this coming from?_

"Yes it is dad. You want me to not grow up. News flash father, it's going to happen." She shook her head, realizing her mistake. "Sorry, it _is_ happening. You need to learn to let go and trust me. I have a good head on my shoulders because I've learned from the best." She finished softly as she gestured towards him, letting her tears silently fall down her face. He moved to hug her but she took a step backwards. "I can't talk to you right now dad. I'm upset with you." Tressa turned around and walked out of the gym, wiping her cheeks.

Troy watched as she walked out of the gym, completely heart broken. He had never gotten into a fight with his daughter like that before. He wiped his face out of frustration before walking back into his office. He sat down in his chair and buried his face in his head. Aidan sat awkwardly in his chair before standing up. "We can talk some other time." Troy just waved a hand at him as he left.

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Tressa walked into her house, dropping her bag by the door. She took off her shoes and placed them on the shoe mat before walking into the living room. She saw her twin cousins sleeping on the couch. She walked over to them and placed a kiss on each of their foreheads before walking into the kitchen to join Gabriella. "Hey Aunt Gabi."

Gabriella closed the fridge after grabbing her bottle of Sunny-D. She smiled at her niece, wrapping her arms around her. "Hey Tress. How was school?" Tressa sighed sadly and sat down near the island counter. "What's wrong?" Gabriella joined her, opening up her drink.

"My dad and I got in a fight." Tressa whispered as she twiddled her thumbs. "It wasn't just a little argument Aunt Gabi. It was a big fight." She explained the whole story to her Aunt who nodded along with her and wrapped her into a comforting hug afterwards. Tressa was crying silently while holding onto Gabriella. "What do I do Aunt Gabi?" She asked desperately. "I hate being mad at him."

"I know Tressa. Just give him some time. It's not everyday that his only daughter goes to high school and has a guy crushing on her." She smiled knowingly at her making Tressa blush slightly. "It's hard for him."

"But it's hard for me to Aunt Gabi. He'll always be the most important man in my life. I just wish we could trust me." Tressa sighed as she leaned against the counter. Just then, Troy walked in and Tressa immediately froze up. Troy tried to smile at her but she looked away, clearing her throat. "I have a lot of work to do. I'll see you at dinner." Tressa breezed past her father and grabbed her back pack, running up to her room.

"Gabi. Help me." Troy pleaded, putting his face in his hands again. "What do I do? It's so hard for me to watch her grow up. I don't want some boy to break her heart. It'll kill me." He sighed as he sat down on the same chair Tressa was.

Gabriella walked over to him and stood behind him, rubbing his shoulders in a friendly manner. "You should have seen in coming Troy." She started. "She needs to grow up and experience this. She might get hurt, Troy, but you have to let her go through it and live life. I see where you're coming from Troy since I have two kids of my own. You just have to be there for her after it happens and tell her that everything will be alright."

Troy smiled at her and pulled her in for a hug. "Thanks Gabs. You always know what to say."

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"Goodnight baby girl." Troy whispered, kissing Tressa's forehead softly. She fell asleep immediately after dinner, not saying one word to him which broke his heart even more. He tucked her in and left the room, pausing at the door to look at her one last time. He quietly closed the door and walked into his own room. After changing into his PJs, he climbed into bed, thinking about the first time him and Sharpay talked about having kids.

_A married 23 year old Troy walked into his bedroom that he shared with his wife. Sharpay was already in bed, changed into her pajamas and face cleaned of makeup. He quickly took off his jeans and shirt, leaving him in his boxers, also known as his pajamas. After jumping on the bed like a little kid, he slid under the covers and wrapped his arms around Sharpay who giggled loudly. She immediately settled her head on his chest and he leaned his head atop of hers. "Hello wife." He smiled._

_Sharpay giggled as she started rubbing his stomach soothingly. "Hello husband. How was work?" she asked, planting a kiss on his bare shoulder._

_He sighed dramatically causing Sharpay to laugh. "It was ok. I'm just glad to be back here with you." He nuzzled his nose in her hair lovingly. "How was your day?" _

"_It was ok. Stupid high school kids." She rolled her eyes. All of a sudden, Troy hovered over her, planting a passionate kiss on her lips. He pulled away, smiling at her confused face. "What was that for?" She asked breathlessly._

"_Do I need a reason to kiss my wife?" He asked, his lips dangerously close to hers. She smiled softly and cupped his cheek lovingly. _

"_I love you." He smiled and dipped his head down to crash his lips onto hers. "I love you too." He mumbled through the kiss. _

_45 minutes later, Sharpay was cuddled up to Troy's side again, gently clutching the sheets to their naked bodies. Her finger was lightly drawing shapes on his chest. He was doing the same; rubbing his thumb on her hip bone. She closed her eyes, smiling as she recalled what had just happened. "I'm happy Troy." She whispered, feeling Troy's hand enlace with hers. _

"_Me too, Sharpay, me too." He kissed her temple, squeezing her fingers reassuringly. She rested her head in the crock of his neck and placed a gentle kiss there. "I love you PayPay." _

"_I love you too." There were a few minutes of peaceful silence before Sharpay ended it. "Can I ask you a question Troy?" She asked, nervous of what he would say. _

"_Of course you can baby." He immediately said once he heard her hesitation and nervousness. "Is everything ok?"_

"_Yeah. I just- how would you feel about us having kids?" She sat up, holding the sheet to her chest modestly. She brought her knees up to his chest and leaned her head against them, looking in his direction. Troy's eyes went wide, looking at his wife with a look saying 'Are you serious?' _

"_What?" _

_Sharpay suddenly found the sheets much more interesting as she picked at a piece if thread. "How do you feel about children? I really want children Troy. We'd be great parents. I know it." She said softly. _

_Troy sat up and smiled too, grabbing her chin carefully and turned her head to look at him. "I think that's a great idea." He answered as he watched her face light up. She lunged at herself at him and he fell back, Sharpay landing on top of him. _

"_Really?" _

"_Really, really." She placed light, butterfly kisses all over his face as he chuckled, keeping his arms firmly around her waist. Her lips finally made it to his in a fierce, passionate kiss. He smiled wickedly, flipping them over so he was hovering over her again. "I think we should start practicing, don't ya think?" He asked, earning a giggle from the gorgeous woman underneath him. _

"_I believe we should." She whispered against his lips before 'practicing.' _

The present Troy shook his head, smiling at his crazy wife. He looked to his left and grabbed the picture of her that was settled on his night stand. He traced it with his finger and kissed it; the routine every time he did before he went to bed. He turned the light off and rolled onto his side, falling asleep immediately.

Tressa quietly walked into her fathers' room about an hour later. She crept over and kneeled next to his side of the bed. She leaned over and placed a kiss on his forehead. "I love you too daddy. I'll always be your baby girl." She kissed his cheek before whispering "Sweet dreams." She tucked him in and left the room as Troy opened his eyes and smiled; his baby girl still loved him.

**This chapter was kind of rushed so I'm sorry for that. I'm also sorry for the long delay. March has been a killer month for me. I went to Ireland for my spring break! ******** It was amazing! And I've just had tons of homework…I hope this chapter makes up for the wait. **

**I don't know exactly when 'Reflection' will be updated but I hope to do that soon. Thanks again for the reviews; they're amazing! **


	5. Chapter 5

**Thank you very much! The reviews are amazing!! ;) **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize. **

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The next morning, Tressa walked into the kitchen, fully dressed and showered. She threw her backpack on the floor and saw Ryan making waffles. Gabriella was placing napkins in the collar of Kylie's and Adam's shirt. She frowned when she didn't see her father anywhere. She checked his room before going down stairs to see it empty. "Good morning." Tressa smiled as she kissed Kylie and Adams' head. They giggled, kissing her on her cheek. Tressa gave Gabriella a hug before hugging Ryan from behind.

"Good morning sweetie. Did you sleep ok?" Ryan asked, handing her a plate with two waffles on it. She smiled a thank you before sitting down at the table.

"I did. Did you guys?" She made a funny face at her cousins, who laughed.

Gabriella laughed as well before taking the seat next to Tressa. "We did."

Tressa swallowed a bite of her waffles before saying, "Where's my dad?"

Ryan and Gabriella exchanged a look before Ryan answered. "He went to the school already. Said he had things to take care of." He offered her a small smile because he could tell she knew that her father was upset. "Just give him some time Tress. He'll come around."

"I guess." She sighed, placing her plate in the sink. "I gotta go get Lacey. I'll see you later." She mumbled, kissing her family good bye, before leaving. Fifteen minutes later, Tressa was venting to her best friend. "I just don't understand Lace. He's making me feel guilty. Am I wrong Lace?"

Lacey threw an arm around her best friends' shoulder in a comforting manner. "Tress, listen to me. Yes, maybe you shouldn't have mentioned your mother this week, but you're dad needs to learn to let you grow up. You two just need to sit down and talk this through. Avoiding each other is not going to you any good. It's just going to kill your guys' relationship." She squeezed Tressa's shoulder. "I would hate to see that. You guys are so close. Are you willing to risk that?" Lacey finished, giving Tressa a look.

Tressa rolled her eyes as she folded her arms over her chest. "I hate it when you're right." She muttered and couldn't help but smile when Lacey started laughing. Tressa wrapped her arms around her friend. "Thanks Lacey. You're my bestest friend."

Lacey shrugged her shoulder modestly, pretending to be interested in her nails. "I know. What would you do without me?" She asked arrogantly earning an eye roll from Tressa. She giggled and linked her arm with Tressa's. "Come on- we gotta get to class." And the two quickly made their way to East High.

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"I hope your essays are turning out ok." Mrs. Johnson, the English teacher, announced a minute after the bell rang. Everyone once again groaned, gaining a laugh from the teacher and Tressa. "If you need any help with it, or with your grammar, feel free to come and talk to me about it. I won't bite." She teased to which everyone laughed to. "Today, we'll be talking about punctuation."

50 minutes later, class ended and Tressa packed up her stuff. She smiled politely at the teacher before leaving the classroom. It was lunch time now and she knew she had to talk to her dad. She procrastinated long enough; it was time to fix things between them. She opened the door to the gym and walked to the tiny office in the corner. Troy was sitting at his desk, typing away on his computer. He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, sighing loudly. Tressa lightly tapped on the door and he quickly looked up, scared by the noise. He took a deep sigh of relief and motioned for her to sit down. She did and smiled at him. "Are you busy?"

Troy shook his head, pushing the keyboard away from him. "No. Just working on some plays. Are you ok?" He leaned forward in his chair, concern etched on his face.

Tressa sighed. "No. I hate fighting with you dad." She started, noticing that he looked down, ashamed of himself. "I'm sorry I brought mom up, especially this week. That must have really hurt you. I was just angry that you didn't, and still don't, trust me. Letting me grow up is a part of life. I know I might get hurt dad, but that's something that I have to find out for myself. I have to pick myself up and move on. But I can't do that and learn from my mistakes if you don't let go. It's like you have a leash on me. I know that you're just trying to protect me, but you have to let up. You're suffocating me and it hurts." She smiled at him before continuing. "I really like Aidan, daddy." She noticed that he cringed and she giggled softly. "You're going to scare him away. Please don't do that." She pleaded, finishing off her speech.

Troy sighed, putting his head in his hands. "I know baby girl. I know I've been holding you back. I just don't want to see you get hurt." He saw her about to interrupt and put his hand up, instantly silencing her. "Even though I know it has to happen in order for you to live life. It's always been me and you Tress, and it's hard to let go. I know your mother would say that same exact thing." He chuckled, though his eyes showed just how sad he was. Tressa noticed and grabbed his hand. He smiled, squeezing her hand for comfort. "Aidan is a great kid too. I'm going to try to back off a little Tress, but it won't be easy. I can't promise that I'll make the right choices, but I'll try."

"That's all I ask for daddy, is that you try." She smiled. "And I'll try to understand where you're coming from. And, I'll still talk to you daddy. I'll still go to you for everything, don't worry about that. I just want some more freedom."

"You can trust me Tressa. As long as you know that I'm always here for you, then I can give you more space." Tressa squealed as she shot out of her chair and embraced her father. He wrapped his arms around her and stroked her hair. "I love you Tressa."

"I love you too daddy. Don't worry about anything- I'm a strong girl, like you raised me to be."

Troy pulled away and kissed her forehead. "You are. Don't ever lose that quality." He sat back down in his chair as did she. "Why aren't you in lunch?"

Tressa giggled. "Because I was overwhelmed with guilt, that's why. You're more important to me than food, dad."

"Well, that's good to know."

Tressa laughed as she stood up, picking up her bag as well. "I'm going to lunch now though dad. I'll meet you here after school, right?"

"Yup. Have a good day princess.".

"You too."

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_Here are some questions to think about__: _

_First, start off by defining what a hero is to you. Then think about the following questions. _

_What are the qualities of a hero? What are not the qualities of a hero? _

_What makes this person so special to you?_

_What does he/she do that inspires you?_

_What does he/she do that makes this person your hero?_

_Remember to be a precise as possible. Don't be afraid to jump into your essay and take it for a ride. If you need any help, don't be afraid to stop by and see me. Good luck and I can't wait to read these. _

Tressa re-read the questions and smiled. This was going to be a piece of cake for her. She turned back to her computer, in her room, and started typing her ideas down. There were so many things that she could say about her father, but she wouldn't even be cutting the surface. There was so much to him that made him her hero. She was so into her writing that she didn't even notice little Kylie walking into her room. Kylie walked over to her and tugged on Tressa's shirt, making Tressa jump. She looked down and breathed a sigh of relief. "Don't scare me like that." Tressa said as she took off her reading glasses. She held her arms out and Kylie smiled, jumping into her cousins' arms.

"What'cha doing?" Kylie rested her head on Tressa's shoulder as she tried to read the screen. She was only seven years old so she couldn't read too much. "My hero is my father." Kylie recited. She turned her head up and looked at Tressa. "Uncle Troy is your hero?"

Tressa nodded her head as she stroked Kylie's hair. "Yes. He is my hero. Why?"

Kylie shook her head furiously causing Tressa to laugh. "That's weird. Because my daddy is my hero too!" Kylie giggled just as Ryan walked into the room. He smiled softly, hearing what his daughter said. Tressa smiled as she saw Ryan and encouraged Kylie to go on, who hadn't noticed Ryan yet. "He's funny, smart and the bestest daddy in the whole world. I love him this much." She stated, holding her arms out wide. Tressa nodded at Ryan, showing him that she agreed with what Kylie said.

Ryan walked over and picked Kylie up and cradled her to his chest. "I love you too princess." He whispered, planting a kiss on her head.

Tressa smiled softly, getting up. After seeing the interaction, she wanted to give her own dad a hug. She knew her dad would be in his bedroom, thinking up a game plan for his upcoming Wildcats game. His door was open and she walked in, smiling as she saw him writing furiously in his notebook, reading glasses perched on his nose. He was laying down, his back leaning against the head board and his feet crossed at his ankles. She sat down on the bed next to him and wrapped her arms around him. "I love you daddy."

Troy put his stuff down cautiously before wrapping his own arms around her. He was clearly confused by the sudden hug. "Um, I love you too baby girl. Not that I don't appreciate this, but why the sudden hug?"

She giggled. "Kylie came into my room and told me about how much she loves Uncle Ryan. Well, Uncle Ryan walked in at that moment and started hugging her. After seeing that, I just wanted to give you a hug too." Tressa explained as she leaned her head on his shoulder. "Am I interrupting you?"

"Of course not. I was just wondering." He kissed the top of her head before reaching out and grabbing his notebook again. "I'm just working on plays for this Friday's game." He looked over his plays and sighed. "Are you going on Friday? I'm sure Aidan would love for you to go."

Tressa blushed and dug her head deeper into his shoulder. "Dad." She whined, exaggerating the sound. "Stop it. It's not like you want to talk about boys with me anyway" Troy chuckled and shook his head.

"Hey- I'm trying." He defended himself, holding his hands up. Tressa picked her head up and smiled at him.

"You are. Thank you." She kissed his cheek before jumping off the bed. "I'm gonna go help Aunt Gabi with dinner. I can't believe you're making her cook dinner." She shook her head at him in mock shame. She 'tsk-ed' a few times, laughing as Troy rolled his eyes.

"You said so yourself that I can't cook." He laughed. "Plus, she offered to cook lasagna. You know me Tress; I'm a sucker for lasagna." Tressa laughed out loud before turning serious. "Isn't that what mom made you for your one year dating anniversary?" She asked, noticing that his smile faltered before he smiled softly, remembering that day.

Troy patted the bed next to him and she sat down, linking her arm through his. "She did." He said before telling her that story.

_A newly 18 year old Sharpay excitedly got ready in her room. It was June 13__th__- her one year anniversary with Troy Bolton. She sighed happily before sitting down in front of her vanity. She was dressed in her robe and her wet hair was thrown up into a bunch of rollers as she applied her make up first. She couldn't wait. He was going to pick her up and bring her to his house, which was empty for the night. He was going to make her dinner himself and pamper her like the princess she was. _

_She hurriedly stepped into her gorgeous gold, mid-thigh length dress before carefully taking out the rollers from her hair. The soft, blonde curls tumbled down, cascading around her shoulders. She carefully brushed her fingers through them and sprayed a little bit of hairspray to it. She strapped on her light gold heels before grabbing her coat and purse and making her way down the stairs just as the door rang. Ryan opened the door and let Troy in. Troy's gaze traveled up Sharpay's frame before ending at her eyes. He smiled warmly, holding out his hand for her to grab- which she did. "You look breath –taking." He complimented, smiling more when he saw her blush. _

_She shyly tucked a strand behind her ear. "Thank you. You look amazing too." She took in his dark blue jeans and button up blue collar shirt. "You ready to go?"_

_Troy nodded, giving her hand a squeeze. "Yeah. We gotta hurry up because I left dinner in the oven." He smiled, taking in the glare that Ryan was throwing at him. "I'll have her home by midnight Ry, don't worry." _

"_You better Bolton." Sharpay rolled her eyes but hugged her brother. "Don't worry Ryrie." She whispered in his ear. She kissed his cheek before grabbing Troy's hand and walking to his car. _

_Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx_

"_It smells delicious Troy." Sharpay called out from the living room. Troy ran into the house and straight to the kitchen, while Sharpay walked into the living room, taking her heels off. She heard some cluttering before Troy walked into the room, the top two buttons undone and the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. _

_He frowned. "We have a problem. I may have accidentally burned the food." He hung his head down, upset with himself for ruining their dinner. _

_Sharpay stood up and walked over to him, placing her hands on his cheeks. She lifted his head and kissed him softly on the lips. "Don't be upset Troy. This is the most romantic thing that anyone has ever done for me." Her hands still framed his face as he smiled softly, turning his head and kissing her right palm. _

_He grabbed her hands and laced their fingers together. "I'm sorry. Let's just go out for dinner." He leaned his head on her shoulder before pulling back and went to grab his keys before Sharpay stopped him. _

"_No. You sit down and relax. I'll make us something." She brushed the fringe out of his face gently. She pushed him onto the couch before going to the kitchen. She heard his heavy foot steps behind her and couldn't help but giggle. "I thought I told you to relax." _

"_I'm not going have you make dinner. I wanted you to be pampered. I wanted to treat you tonight; not the other way around." He explained softly. _

"_Troy, you treat me like a princess every day. Just let me do this one thing for you." She gave him a smile as he nodded softly. "Good. Now get your cute butt into the loving room and relax." He laughed as he walked out into the living room, her following him and massaging his shoulders the whole way. _

_15 minutes later, Sharpay walked into the living room and cuddled up next to Troy, who wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "Dinner will be ready in about thirty minutes." She kissed his cheek before leaning her head on his chest, watching the movie he was watching on TV. _

"_I love you PayPay." He whispered as he massaged her scalp with his fingers. Sharpay sighed contently, his fingers working magic. She put her hand on his chest and rubbed it affectionately. "Love you too Troy." _

_They stayed in that position for the next thirty minutes, when Sharpay had to get up and finish up with dinner. Luckily, Troy already had a salad made for the night and some rolls already heated up. She placed the salad and rolls on the table before walking back into the kitchen to grab the pan of lasagna. When she walked back out into the dining room, she stopped walking and gasped softly. Troy had covered the floor with red rose petals. The petals also covered her chair and some lay softly on the table. Troy was standing at the end of the table looking nervous. "Do you like it?" _

_Sharpay nodded, unable to form any words. Her eyes were starting to water as she looked around the candle lit and rose petal room. "God Troy, you're perfect." She breathed out just as the tears started to fall down her cheeks. Troy jogged over to her and took the pan out of her hands and set it on the table before embracing Sharpay. She wrapped her arms around his torso tightly, not wanting to let him go. She breathed in his scent and smiled as she settled her left cheek against his heart, feeling it beat. _

_He pulled away and wiped her cheeks dry. "Are you ready for dinner?" _

_She giggled. "I can't believe I'm crying right now. I'm sorry." She wiped her eyes again before walking to the table. Troy, being the gentleman he was, pulled her chair out for her to sit down. She smiled a thank you as he took the seat across from her. "Enjoy." _

_The two ate dinner within thirty minutes, making conversation throughout. Troy cleared the table, telling Sharpay to go into the living room. She rolled her eyes but left anyway. Troy arrived a few minutes later with a plate of chocolate covered strawberries. Sharpay rolled her eyes, a huge grin taking over her face. "My favorite." She said as he sat down next to her. _

"_I know." He smiled cheekily as he picked one up and held it out for her. She leaned forward and opened her mouth and took a bite of it. _

"_Delicious." She said as she swallowed the bite. _

_They fed each other the strawberries before Sharpay lied down on the couch with her feet on his lap, with Troy giving her a foot massage. They watched the 'The Notebook', Sharpay's choice, for the rest of the night with Troy performing sweet gestures for her. _

Tressa smiled, loving the relationship her father and mother had. That's what she wanted. She wanted someone to treat her the way her father treated her mother. "That was adorable, daddy." She whispered, reaching up and wiping his tears away.

By the time the story ended, Ryan and Gabriella walked in and sat down, listening to the story along with Kylie and Adam. Ryan smiled, remembering that night. Kylie and Adam didn't really know the importance of the story but felt bad, seeing their Uncle Troy cry. The two crawled over to him and sat on his lap. "We love you Uncle Troy." Kylie said as she leaned her head on his shoulder. Gabriella and Ryan smiled at how caring their kids were.

Troy chuckled and kissed the tops of their head. "I love you too." He saw Ryan nod at him slightly, a way of showing his support without saying anything. "Gabs, is dinner done yet?" Everyone, excluding the twins, rolled their eyes at Troy's way of killing the loving mood. They got up and left the room, groaning as he chuckled. "What did I do?"

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**Alrighty then, another chapter completed! I love this chapter. I think it's my favorite one so far! **

**I'm working on updating the epilogue for 'Reflection.' I'm so sad that that story is ending, but a sequel will be in the works. Probably after a few more chapters of this story. **

**I hope you liked this chapter!! **


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey everyone! This chapter is a bit delayed and I'm sorry! **

**I just heard Ashley's full song 'It's Alright, It's Ok' and I love it! It sounds amazing and I can't wait to see the music video for it! What did you guys think of it?!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize. **

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After the wonderful dinner that Troy was oh-so-happy to eat, the family moved into the living room to watch a movie together. The twins were set on watching 'Sky High' so that's what the family chose. Adam was cuddled up with Gabriella, since he was a momma's boy, and Kylie was cuddled up with Ryan, daddy's girl. Tressa was next to Troy who wrapped his arm around her in a fatherly manner. The twins were engrossed in the movie while the adults were trying their best to stay awake.

"He can fly!" Kylie squealed excitedly, clapping her hands quietly.

Troy smiled mischievously as he stood up. "Tressa can fly too, you know." He said, gaining a confused look from everyone.

"She can?" Adam asked incredulously.

"Yup." Before Tressa knew what was happening, Troy picked her up and spun her around above his head. She screamed in shock before laughing. "Dad?!" She giggled as her family laughed along with them. Kylie clapped her hands again as she giggled at her uncle.

Tressa was laughing so hard, gripping onto her fathers' arms so she wouldn't fall. "Dad, put me down please." She pleaded, grateful that he listened and set her down gently on her feet. She put a hand to her head as she tried to stop the room from spinning. Troy grabbed her arm gently, making sure she didn't fall over. Kylie and Adam were in a fit of giggles as Gabriella and Ryan tried to calm them down a bit.

Tressa shook her head as the final wave of dizziness disappeared. She turned to her father and hit his shoulder playfully. "Thanks a lot dad." She said sarcastically as she rolled her eyes.

Troy just chuckled, flopping on the couch with a long, dramatic sigh. He covered his eyes with his arm just as the doorbell rang. The family exchanged a look, wondering who could be visiting. Tressa stood up to answer the door since no one else was going to. "Lazy family." She muttered as she opened the door and gasped when she saw Aidan standing on the other side. "Hi." She said breathlessly as she walked out onto the porch and closed the door behind her.

Aidan smiled as the two walked over to the porch swing. "Hi. Am I interrupting anything?" He asked, starting to push the swing slowly by pumping his feet.

"No, just watching a movie with the family." She wrapped her arms around herself as a cool breeze blew by. "Is there something you need?" She asked as she turned her body to face him. Her legs were tucked under her, trying to keep her skirt from riding up.

He smiled bashfully. "Would it be weird to say that I just wanted to see you?" He asked quietly, rubbing his hands together as he avoided her gaze.

Tressa looked at him incredulously before smiling shyly. She debated on what to say, seeing as how she's never been in this situation before. "Not at all." She grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze reassuringly. Aidan smiled up at her and enlaced his fingers with hers, making her freak out on the inside secretly. He took his free hand and softly brushed a strand of hair out of her face. She bit her lip, the huge smile taking over her face.

"So, I know we haven't really known each other for too long, but I was wondering if you'd be willing to, maybe, go on a date with me sometime." He rambled nervously.

Tressa inwardly squealed and tried to remain cool on the outside. "I'd love to." She said gently, nervously twirling a piece of hair on her finger.

Aidan let out the breath he was holding in and smiled. "Good. How about tomorrow? Maybe get some dinner?"

Tressa nodded. "That sounds great."

"Alright." He stood up and helped her up with the hand he was still holding. "I should go now. My parents don't know that I left." They walked to the front door. "So, I'll call you tomorrow?"

"Sure. Here's my number." She accepted the phone that he handed her and quickly typed in her number. Before he put his phone away, he opened up the camera and told her to smile. Once she did, he saved the picture and set it as his default. She giggled again. "I'll talk to you tomorrow then."

He took her hand that he was holding and brought it up to his lips, keeping eye contact with her. He placed a gentle kiss on the back of her hand before dropping it to her side. "I definitely will. Good night Tressa."

"Good night Aidan." She watched with a smile as he walked off of the porch, hands in his front pockets, and walk down the street. She leaned her back against the door for a minute before turning around and walking inside the house. The smile was plastered to her face as she walked into the living room to see her family looking at her expectantly. "What?"

Troy seemed tense, his jaw stiff and his arms crossed over his chest. It was obvious that they were looking out the window and spying. Gabriella was smiling brightly and Ryan was the almost the same as Troy, a little less tense as him. The twins just continued watching, clueless to the current situation. "Who was that?" Troy asked stiffly.

"Aidan." Tressa answered dreamily, leaning against the door frame.

"What did he want?"

"He asked me out, daddy!" Gabriella shrieked as she stood up and ran over to her niece. The two embraced and started talking excitedly about the date.

Troy was less than pleased but tried to support her, still new to the whole letting-her-grow-up thing. He stood up and walked over to her. Tressa looked up at him, nervous. She was afraid that he would say no. Instead, he pulled her in for a hug and kissed the top of her head. "That's great Tress." He whispered before pulling away from her.

Tressa and Gabriella exchanged a look before glancing back at Troy. Tressa raised a hand and put it against his forehead, making sure he didn't have a fever. "He's doesn't have a fever Aunt Gabi." She said as she turned to face her aunt.

Troy shook his head, holding back a laugh. "I'm not sick Tressa. I'm just; I'm trying to give you the space and freedom that you deserve. Remember? I'm trying."

Tressa smiled and hugged him again. "I love you daddy." She whispered before turning to her Aunt. "I have a date!" Tressa started doing her happy dance, ignoring the laughs from her family before running up the stairs. "Come on Aunt Gabi, I need your help picking out an outfit for tomorrow!"

Later on that night, Gabriella walked down the stairs after helping Tressa pick out an outfit. She saw Ryan lying down on the couch with Kylie and Adam cuddling into each side of him. Troy was going around the room picking up the barbies and trucks lying on the ground. "You don't have to do that Troy." She said as she walked into the room and picking up the rest.

"It's fine. To be honest, I kind of miss this." He smiled softly, starring at the stuffed animal in his hands. "I miss picking up Tressa's dolls off the ground. Now, I'm washing her bras and underwear." He chuckled along with Gabriella, who put her hand on his arm. "Don't waste anytime with your kids Gabi, they'll grow up before you know it." He looked up from the toy and smiled at Gabriella.

Gabriella glanced at her kids. "I know how you feel. It feels like yesterday I was changing their diapers. I think we've both realized that time flies huh?" She giggled, brushing hair out of Kylies' face.

"You said it Gabs." Troy dumped all of the toys into the bucket in the corner of the room before turning the television off. He picked up all of the empty cups and set them in the sink, not feeling like cleaning them tonight. He walked back into the room and saw Gabriella trying to pick up both kids. Troy rushed over to her and picked up little Kylie and settled her in his arms. Gabriella smiled a thank you and the two walked to the kids' room. They carefully set the kids down and kissed their foreheads. Once they left the room, Troy pulled Gabriella in for a good night hug. "Night Gabs."

"Good night Troy. See you in the morning." He kissed her cheek before walking to Tressas' room as Gabriella walked down the stair to wake up Ryan. He quietly walked into the room, tip-toeing over to her side of the bed. She was fast asleep; the blankets all the way up to her chin. He smiled softly before kissing her forehead. "Good night baby girl. Sweet dreams."

"You to daddy." She mumbled and smiled slightly before drifting off to sleep. He chuckled to himself before standing up. He was about to leave the room when he noticed something on her computer. He sat down on her computer chair, reading what was written. It was her 'Hero' essay.

_There are so many things that I could say about my father and I wouldn't even be cutting the surface. So, yes, my father is my hero. He's been the most amazing person in life since day one. My mother died when I was born so it's always been just the two of us. He dropped everything to take care of me; and it couldn't have been easy being a single parent. To be both a mother and a father to me must have been the hardest thing in the world. On top of that, he didn't have time to grieve from the loss of my mother. He had to be strong for me, a newborn baby who couldn't take care of herself. With the help of our family and his friends, he was able to be an incredible father and raise me through all of the ups and downs of life._

_I'm sure it's not easy for him to see me grow up right before his eyes. He wanted, and always will want, me to stay 6 years old forever. I'm sure every time he sees me, he remembers me when I was little and he was walking me into kindergarten. As I continue to grow up, the bond that my father and I have together grows stronger. It may be awkward at times to talk to a father about female problems, but I know that he'll suck it up and put on a strong face for me because that's what a hero does. Heroes drop everything in their life, any problems they're going through in their own life, to help another person. That's exactly what my dad does for me. Anytime I need to talk, I know that I my father will always be all ears for me and give me the best advice he can give me to make me stronger as an individual and our bond stronger._

Troy literally had tears in his eyes as he read the first half of this essay. He looked back at Tressa who was still asleep. He choked back a sob as he turned back to the computer, scrolling down to the next part of the essay.

_Most teenage girls would be embarrassed to go to the mall with their parents, but not me. I love going to the mall with my dad. I'm honored to be seen with my father because, as I mentioned before, he is incredible. He makes me laugh when I don't want to, and he makes me talk when I want to keep everything bottled up. I also know that I can trust him and go to him for anything. I'm not afraid to be myself because I know that he won't judge me and vise versa. _

_Another reason he is my hero is because he is such a strong person. Right now, I'm in the midst of growing up; going on dates, going through my female stages and all. Yet, here he is, taking every blow I aim at him. It's so hard to see the far away look on his face when he sees me growing up. He gets a sad look on his face, like he doesn't want me to grow up. It's something that I can't control and he is trying his hardest to let me go, which puts a smile on my face. _

_What I'm trying to say is that I love my father. No matter what anyone else says or does, I know that I have the best father in the world. Through every single up and down, he's always there to catch me. And by raising me as a single parent inspires me even more. Dealing with a child with two parents is hard enough, but doing it on your own? Come on- that just screams hero. I don't care if any one thinks my father isn't a hero because I'm the one that grew up with him and I'm the one he took care of by himself and for that, I'm extremely proud. I'm not afraid to admit it: my father makes me proud and I am honored to call my father, my hero. _

Troy was fully crying by the end of the essay. He starred at the screen, thinking that he had an amazing daughter. To know that Tressa thinks so highly of him, to think of him as a hero, to say that she is proud of him, is enough to keep him going. There are times when maybe he'll fail at something, but just knowing that Tressa sees through that and still be honored to call him her father, makes his heart swell. Troy closed her laptop and leaned his elbows on it, putting his face in his hands. He started to openly cry, feeling proud of himself for one of the few times in his life. He stood up and walked over to Tressa, giving her forehead another kiss. "You make me so proud too Tressa." He walked to the door and closed it behind him.

He walked back to his room and sat down on his bed, openly sobbing into his hands. He let out all of the pain and emotions he had been feeling for a long time now. The pain of Sharpays' death, the pain of going through almost 14 years without her while raising a daughter, the pain of watching his little girl grow up, everything. He was sobbing so much that he started to gasp for air. Gabriella must have heard him because she walked in and immediately sat beside him, pulling him into a comforting embrace. Instead of pushing her away, he sobbed into her shoulder, his own shoulders shaking. Gabriella couldn't take it and started crying as well, placing kisses atop of his head. "It's so hard Gabi." He cried, still sobbing.

"I know Troy. Just let it all out. This had been building up for much too long. Let it out sweetie." She soothed, rubbing his back gently. He rested his head in the crook of her neck, trying to calm himself down. "It's alright honey." She whispered quietly.

About 10 minutes later, Troy caught his breathe and his crying has slowed down to a minimum. "Thanks Gabs. I just needed to let it out." He whispered as Gabriella started stroking his hair soothingly.

"Anything for family Troy. I'm always here for you."

"You should have read the essay she wrote for English class." He lifted his head off of her shoulder and looked at her, smiling softly. "She said that she was proud of me Gabs. She's honored to call me her father and nothing or no one can change that." He explained, earning a smile from her and more tears from him.

"Of course she thinks that Troy. She loves you very much and there's not one person in the world who can take your place in her heart; not even a certain teenage boy named Aidan." She smiled as she heard him chuckle. She continued to rub his back as she spoke. "We all love you Troy and we are all so proud of you."

"Thank you Gabs. To just read it made my heart swell. I love her so much and I'm trying so hard. It's encouraging to know that she cares so much."

"And don't worry about anything, Troy. You're doing the best you can which is enough for her." Gabriella smiled, giving him another friendly hug which he gratefully accepted. "Well, I'm going to let you sleep now." She stood up along with Troy. "I love you Troy. I'm always here for you." She kissed his forehead in a motherly way before walking to the door.

"Gabs, you hold a special place in my heart." He smiled softly at her. "Love you too. Good night." She nodded her head before leaving the room quietly. Troy sighed as he sat down again on the bed, putting his head in his hands and taking deep breaths.

"_Troy?" 25 year old Sharpay called out after walking into their apartment. She lazily dropped her bag on the ground and set her keys on the key hooks by the door. She took her heels off and set them on the mat before venturing further into the apartment. The bright grin on her face made its way up to her eyes. Nothing could ruin her day today. _

"_In our room Pay." She heard him respond quietly. She hurried into their bedroom and jumped on the bed, kneeling in between his legs. He was lying against the head board, remote control in his hand. He jumped at the sudden movement before grinning at her. "Hey beautiful." He whispered, pulling her in for a sweet kiss. _

_She pulled back and squirmed excitedly before settling down between his legs, leaning her back against his chest. His arms wrapped around her waist as he planted a kiss on the side of her head. "Remember how I told you that I had a doctor's appointment today?" She asked, feeling him nod against her head. "Well, I told them how I've been feeling yucky all week and they took some tests." She turned her head to connect eyes with him. "They told me what was wrong." He threw her a confused look, scrunching his eyebrows together. "I'm pregnant." _

_Troys' eyes bugged out as he starred down at her. They've been trying for 2 years to have a baby and now it was finally happening. "Are you serious?" He asked incredulously._

"_As a heart attack Troy." She smiled brightly again. "We're going to have a baby." He pulled her in for a loving kiss as he rubbed his hands along her flat stomach protectively. They pulled apart and gazed at each other. "I love you Troy." She whispered, closing her eyes and sighing contently. _

"_I love you too Sharpay." He maneuvered her so she was laying flat on the bed and he was kneeling next to her. He gently lifted her shirt until it lay gently under her bust. Leaning down, he placed a gentle kiss on her stomach, bringing tears to Sharpays' eyes. He rested his cheek against it, rubbing a hand soothingly over it. "Hello in there, it's your daddy." He whispered as Sharpay covered her mouth with her hands, gasping silently at his sweet gesture. "You're going to have the best mommy in the world." He continued, placing gentle kisses on her stomach occasionally. "Your mommy is beautiful, sweet, funny, and you're just going to love her."_

"_And you're going to have an amazing father too." Sharpay added, running a hand through his hair lovingly. _

_Troy smiled up at her, holding her gaze as he kissed her stomach one last time before climbing on top of her, careful not to squish her. He leaned his head down and captured her lips in a passionate kiss. "We're going to be amazing parents PayPay." He mumbled, giving her one last kiss before rolling next to her, wrapping his arms around protectively. _

"_We are." _

Troy took his head out of his hands and smiled gently. He took the picture of Sharpay that was on his night stand and smiled at it. "I am an amazing father Pay." He said proudly before kissing the picture gently. "And you would have been the best mother in the world."

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**Ok…so another chapter down. I was on the verge of tears when writing about Troy crying in his room…so sad. I know the flashback was short and I'm sorry about that. There will be more to come later! **


	7. Chapter 7

**Thank you guys! Your reviews are amazing! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize. **

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"Daddy? Are you alive?"

Tressa shook her fathers' shoulder again and huffed when she hadn't received a response form him. This was what Troy was like every Saturday morning. The two of them didn't have to wake up for school so he loved to sleep in. Tressa glanced at the clock and noticed that it was fifteen minutes to noon. Rolling her eyes, she turned back to her father who was in a deep sleep. All she could hear were his loud snores. Other than that, silence. He didn't even move a muscle. Tressa once again shook his shoulder violently, losing her patience with him.

Troy, who was lying on his stomach, his head facing the opposite way of where Tressa was standing, started to wake up. He heard his daughter and felt her shaking his shoulder but decided to ignore her. He was exhausted and just wanted to sleep for a little bit longer. After a few minutes of Tressa trying and failing, he decided to make his consciousness known. Troy rolled over onto his back and flung an arm over his eyes. "Yes dear?" He teased.

Tressa sighed with relief and annoyance. "It's about time. Do you know how hard it is to wake you up in the morning? My god, it's like trying to teach you science- impossible." She rolled her eyes as Troy let out a chuckle.

"You know science isn't my strong point, baby girl." Troy finally removed the arm that was covering her face and was smiling over at her, letting his eyes adjust to the light. Tressa walked over to the window and opened the curtains earning a groan from her father. Tressa walked back over to the bed and pulled the blankets off of him, ignoring his pleas of protests. She also ignored the fact that he was only dressed in his boxers.

"Suck it up and deal with it." She said, speaking of the sun light. "It's almost noon, dad. You have to get up." She walked over to the door and opened it. Before she left, she turned back around. "Don't make me come back up here." She gave him a stern look while pointing at him. Troy laughed at his daughter before waving a hand in her direction. "I can't believe I'm the responsible one here." Tressa mumbled as she closed the door and walked down the stairs.

Troy simply shook his head, a smile playing on his face as he stood up and stretched. He walked over to the bathroom, rubbing his chest on the way, and decided to take a quick shower. Following his shower, he threw on a pair of jeans and a simple black shirt before walking down the stairs to find his family, minus Tressa, playing a game of Life in the living room floor. "Good afternoon." He smiled at them.

"Morning Uncle Troy. We're playing Life." Kylie announced, smiling as he dropped a kiss on the top of her head.

"I see." He moved on to Adam and placed a kiss on his head too then followed suit with Gabriella. He patted Ryan on the back before leaving the room to get some food from the kitchen. Troy found Tressa cutting an orange into six pieces, setting them on a plate. "Hey Tress."

Tressa looked up from her task and smiled warmly at her father. "Hey daddy, I was just finishing up your lunch plate." She exclaimed, gesturing to the plate of food including a grilled turkey sandwich with mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato and American cheese with a side of sour cream and union chips. To finish it off, she added the pieces of orange on it.

Troy glanced at the food then back at Tressa, shocked. "Oh, um, thanks." He walked over to Tressa and kissed her forehead. "You didn't have to sweetie." He pulled out a chair at the island counter as Tressa pulled out the jug of iced tea from the fridge. She poured him a glass and placed it next to his plate. "What's all this for?"

Tressa took the seat opposite him and sighed. "I just really want to thank you for letting me go out tonight with Aidan. I know it's not easy for you so I felt like I needed to do something for you to make it up to you." She smiled softly at her father, truly touched that she had the best father in the world.

Troy smiled knowingly. He knew there was a reason for the pre-made lunch. Troy carefully set the piece of sandwich he had in his hands on the plate and focused his attention on her. "Tressa, you don't have to thank me. You're growing up and, like you said, I can't stop it. Aidan is a good kid and I trust him just like I trust you."

"I just know it's hard for you daddy. I wanted to show you that I appreciate everything you do for me." She kissed his cheek before leaving the room, joining her family in the game of Life.

Troy watched his daughter leave before smiling to himself. He picked up his plate and followed Tressa into the living room. After setting the plate down on the coffee table, he went behind Kylie and lifted her up, taking the seat on the ground and setting her on his lap. "Uncle Troy!" She squealed, leaning her head on his shoulder happily.

Tressa had done the same with Adam, who was more than happy to sit on his cousins' lap, and announced that she was on his team for the rest of the game. "I'm the green car Tressey!" Adam said as he pointed to his car on the game board.

"And I'm the red one Uncle Troy!" Kylie copied her brother just like a twin would do at their age. Troy nodded before counting her, I mean their, money.

"Oh, we have the nice house." Troy said approvingly, showing everyone the card with the picture of the Victorian style house on it. "When's it our turn Kay?"

"Now!" She reached out and spun the spinner and giggled, clapping her hands, as it spun. Once it stopped, Troy reached for the car and moved it the number of spaces all the while making car noises, earning giggles from the twins.

"Ok, it says that we have another baby." Troy said, cringing at the thought. He shrugged his shoulders, telling himself that it was just a game, and took a little blue piece, representing a boy, and placed it in the miniature car. "What's our career?"

Kylie picked up the card and thrusted it in his face. He laughed, taking it out of her hand to read it. "Police officer. That's a pretty cool job." He placed the card down on the floor before playing with Kylie's hair.

Gabriella and Ryan watched as Tressa Troy interacted with their kids, smiling. The way they stooped down to their levels mentally impressed the two. They were able to think like the kids did and were able to just be immature and child like. The married couple shared a look, thinking the same thing; did Tressa and Troy realize just how alike they were?

A few hours later, Ryan and Gabriella settled the twins in bed for their nap and walked down the stairs where Troy and Tressa were picking up the board game. "You guys are so great with the kids." Gabriella smiled, taking the box with the game in it and put it in the game closet.

"I love them." Tressa defended as she threw her hands up for effect. She flopped down on the couch and closed her eyes.

Ryan and Gabriella exchanged another look, realizing that that's what Troy always does, flop on the couch when exhausted. Troy chuckled, missing the look, and sat down at the end of the couch, placing Tressas' feet on his lap. "So, I was thinking since Gabi and I are leaving on Monday night, we could go out to dinner tomorrow night." Ryan offered as he and Gabi sat down on the smaller couch in the room. "I would say tonight but a certain someone," He glanced at Tressa who blushed, biting her lip to hold back a smile. "Has a date tonight."

Troy laughed as Tressa put a pillow over her face to hide her blush from everyone. "That sounds great. Doesn't it Tress?" He asked, trying to get a rise out of her. Instead of answering, she lifted her hand and gave them a thumbs up, the other hand still holding the pillow on her face.

Gabriella shook her head, smiling. "Tress? What are you doing?"

"You guys are embarrassing me." Her voice was muffled from the pillow.

Troy smiled triumphantly. "It's my job as a father to embarrass you, so don't yell at me. It's an unwritten rule."

Gabriella and Ryan rolled their eyes. "Troy, please, that's the dumbest thing I've ever heard." Gabriella stated, leaning her head on Ryans' shoulder. Ryan wrapped his arm around her and started to stroke her hair.

Troy stuck his tongue at her and started to tickle Tressas' feet. She squirmed around, giggling. She started to kick her feet to try and get him to stop. The pillow fell off her face as she twisted around but Troy had a firm grip on her ankle. She kicked him hard on the thigh, unknowingly giving him a Charlie horse. He let go of her ankle and started to rub his thigh, trying to make the pain go away.

Tressa laughed at his misery, covering her mouth with her hand. Troy snapped his head over in her direction, rolling his eyes at her. "This isn't funny."

"Well, at least she kicked your thigh and not another part of the body." Ryan joked, earning a slap from his wife. Tressa giggled as Troy nodded his head, agreeing with his brother in law.

"I hear you, man."

Gabriella and Tressa looked at one another before muttering "Men." Tressa stood up and started walking to the stairs. "Will you help me get ready Aunt Gabi?" Gabriella nodded her head and ran up the stairs excitedly. The men heard Tressas' door slam before turning on the TV.

An hour later, the doorbell rang. Troy and Ryan glanced at one another before walking to the door. They opened the door and saw Aidan standing outside on the porch. "Well, hello there." Ryan said, crossing his arms and pinning a slight glare on the teenage boy. Troy did the same, looking Aidan up and down.

"Hi." Aidan said nervously, shuffling on his feet. The glares he was receiving made him even more nervous than he already was to begin with.

Troy and Ryan moved to the side and told Aidan to come in. They all sat down in the living room, waiting for the girls to come down. Troy and Ryan shared a look before glaring at Aidan again. "So, Aidan, what are your intentions with my niece?" Ryan asked, leaning forward in his chair. Troy stifled back a laugh, trying to stay intimidating.

Aidans' eyes widened a little but tried to remain cool. "I, uh just want to, uh, take her out for dinner." He answered, stuttering as he spoke.

Ryan nodded stiffly. "Just dinner?"

"Yes."

"Yes what?"

"Yes sir."

"Ryan Anthony Evans what do you think you're doing?" Gabriella hollered at her husband as she walked into the room. She crossed her arms over her chest while glaring at him; her foot tapping on the ground impatiently. "Well?"

Ryan smiled sheepishly, ducking his head. Troy laughed, patting Ryan on the back in support. "He was just making sure Aidan here wouldn't try anything with Tressa." Troy answered for him, but soon regretted it as Gabriella glared at him harshly.

"You two are scaring the crap out of the poor boy." Gabriella said before walking over to the couch and sitting down next to Aidan. "You two should be ashamed of yourselves. Now apologize to the poor boy."

"Sorry."

"Now say it like you mean it." Gabriella demanded

"Sorry Aidan."

"Ooh, this is Tressey's cute date?" Kylie said as she ran into the room followed by Adam. The twins had just woken up from their nap and were hyper as ever. She sat on her mothers' lap and turned to Aidan. "You're cute."

Aidan blushed while Ryan snapped his head up and starred at his daughter. He groaned loudly, his daughter could not think a guy was cute; she's too young. Troy again patted his back in support while holding back a chuckle. Everyone heard Tressa clear her throat from the bottom of the stairs and turned her way. Aidan looked her up and down, taking in her outfit. She was wearing a gorgeous floral printed dress (.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/ashley_) that landed at her knee with a pair of black flats. On top of that, she wore a black cropped jacket and her dirty blonde hair was left down and curly with a simple silver head band. She wore her silver 'T' necklace along with a pair of silver bangles.

"Wow." Aidan whispered, not being able to take his eyes off of her. Troy, who thought that Aidan had enough time of looking at his daughter, cleared his throat loudly succeeding as Aidan turned his attention some where else. Tressa smiled as she ignored her father.

"Thank you. You look wow too." She complimented. He was wearing a simple pair of dark blue jeans and a button up brown shirt.

"Are you ready to go?" Aidan asked as he walked over to her.

"Almost. I just have one more thing to do." She walked over to Troy and pulled him in for a hug. "Thank you daddy." She whispered before kissing his cheek. She pulled away and he kissed her forehead in return. Then, she hugged Ryan. "I know you were just looking out for me Uncle Ryan." She kissed his cheek too as he kissed hers before walking back over to Aidan. "Now I'm ready." She linked her arm through Aidans' after he held it out for her.

"Is there a specific time I should have her home, sir?" Aidan asked nervously.

"Let's say 10:30." Troy answered after silently asking Gabriella who nodded her head in agreement. "Have a good time and be careful." He warned.

"Will do, sir. I'll have her home in one piece." Aidan responded as Tressa giggled. The two walked to the door after saying good bye and walked to his car. He helped her in the back seat before walking to the other side and climbing in. "This is my mom. Mom, this is Tressa."

The woman in the drivers' seat turned around and smiled. "Hello. You can call me Haylie."

Tressa smiled and turned back to Aidan. "You look exactly like your mother."

Aidan and Haylie exchanged a knowing look. "That's what everyone says." Aidan said as his mother started to drive towards their destination. After about ten minutes, the two arrived at the restaurant. Aidan turned to Tressa and smiled. "Wait here." He quickly climbed out of the car and ran to Tressas' side of the car. Opening the door, he held a hand out and helped her out of the car.

She smiled. "Thank you."

"I'll call you when we're ready is that ok mom?" Haylie nodded her head, realizing just how much of a gentleman her son really was. "That's fine. Have fun you two."

"Thank you for the ride." Tressa said politely, earning a wave of the hand from Haylie.

"It's no problem. I'll see you two later." With one last wave, she drove off.

Tressa looked at the restaurant and smiled. "Wow. How ironic is this?" She said to herself but Aidan heard her.

"What?"

Tressa smiled again and shook her head, gesturing to the restaurant with her hand. "This is the same restaurant my dad took my mother to on their first date." She explained, smiling softly at the building. "How weird."

"Do you want to leave?" Aidan asked, not really knowing anything about her mother.

"No. I want to go here." She whispered, losing herself in an emotional world for a minute. She shook her head and looked over at him, smiling. "Are we going in?" She joked.

Aidan laughed and grabbed her hand before the two entered the building. The hostess quickly sat them and told them the waitress would be there soon. "So, if you don't mind me asking, what happened to your mother?" Tressa snapped her head up and swallowed nervously. "I mean, you and your father seem really sensitive on that subject. You don't have to answer if you don't want to though."

Tressa shook her head and started fiddling with the silverware on the table. "She, um, she died while giving birth to me." Tressa whispered as silent tears fell down her cheeks. "It's just been my dad and I my whole life which is why we're so close. It's also why he's taking this date really hard. He wasn't ready for me to grow up. But, no matter what anyone says, he'll always be the most amazing person in my life." She looked up at Aidan and smiled. "He doesn't hate you Aidan. He just needs a little time to let this sink in. Give him some time; he'll come around."

Aidan was shocked and started to feel guilty about asking her. "I'm sorry Tressa. I didn't mean to upset you."

"No it's ok. I wanted to tell you that anyway." She smiled weakly. "Excuse me; I'm going to use the bathroom." She stood up and left the table quickly. She walked into the bathroom and leaned against the sink, closing her eyes. After a few minutes she looked at her reflection and started to wipe off her cheeks. She fluffed her hair and smiled at her appearance before leaving the bathroom and joining Aidan at the table. "Sorry about that. I just needed a minute." She smiled as she noticed he ordered her a Pepsi. She picked up the glass and took a quick sip of it.

"No problem. Are you ok?" He asked, concerned.

"Yeah, I just get a little emotional talking about that." She picked up her menu and started scanning over it. "So, what would you recommend for dinner tonight?" She asked Aidan, knowing he had a chance to look over the menu while she was gone.

He chuckled, opening up his own menu. "Well, I prefer the steak. For you, I recommend the spaghetti and meatballs."

Tressa smiled as she closed up her menu. "I love spaghetti. It's one of the few things my dad can actually cook without burning." She giggled. "Anyways, tell me about yourself." Tressa said, leaning her elbows on the table comfortably.

"What do you want to know?" He asked, leaning closer to her flirtatiously.

Tressa laughed. "I don't know. Where you were born, what's your favorite color, favorite hobbies? I don't know."

"Alright. I was born in New York City fourteen years ago. I moved here when I was about eight years old when my mom divorced my father. I still see him on holidays though. My favorite color is blue; a new found reason why it's my favorite color." He smiled, talking about her eyes. She blushed and encouraged to continue. "I like to play basketball, as you know, but I also have a secret love for science." Tressas' eyes bugged out shocked. "I know, shocker. I'm just fascinated by the way our body works and how our environment changes. Now what about you?"

"Well, I was born and raised here in Albuquerque. My favorite color is purple, because it was my moms as well. I play basketball sometimes with my father but have no secret talent or liking for it." They both shared a laugh. "I'm on the scholastic decathlon team and am also in the art club. I love my little cousin to death, Kylie and Adam who you met earlier. That was my Uncle Ryan and Aunt Gabi, by the way. I have a lot of Aunt and Uncles but they're not blood related to me. They're actually my dads' friends from high school that I call my family." She finished just as the waitress came over to take their order. "I'll have the spaghetti please."

"And I'll have the steak, well done." The waitress smiled and took their menus away before leaving. "Your Uncle scares me." He stated.

Tressa started giggling. "Really? He's a teddy bear at heart."

"He was glaring at me and asked what my intentions with you are. I'm only 14 years old." He laughed as well as Tressa.

"He's just looking out for me. He's my moms' twin brother you know." She took another sip of her drink.

"Really? I didn't know she had one."

"That's her only sibling. He keeps telling me I look just like her when she was my age. I don't think so though. She was gorgeous." She took her wallet out of the purse and pulled out a picture of her mom. She handed it to him and smiled. "That's her."

Aidan smiled as he looked over the picture. "You do look exactly like her."

"No. She's so much more gorgeous than I am." She said quietly as she put the picture away along with her wallet.

Aidan reached across the table and grabbed her hand. "Don't say that about yourself. You're not giving yourself enough credit." He smiled warmly at her. "I think you're beautiful."

Tressa smiled shyly and bit her lip. "Thank you."

"I just speak the truth." The waitress came back and carefully set their plates on the table.

"Can I get you guys anything else?" She asked looking between the couple.

"Can I have a water please?" Tressa asked, smiling at the waitress.

"Of course."

"I'll have a water too please."

"No problem. I'll be right back." The waitress walked away to get their drinks.

"This looks amazing." Tressa said as she mixed the spaghetti around on her plate and grabbed a roll from the basket. She cut open the roll and quickly buttered it up. She took a bite of her food and sighed contently. "This tastes amazing. How's your food?"

Aidan finished swallowing his food first before answering. "It's good. Want to try a bite?" He asked, holding out a piece of his steak on his fork for her.

She smiled and took it off the fork, savoring the taste. "That is good."

The waitress came back and set the waters on the table. "Alright, there you go. I'll be back later and see how you guys are doing." She smiled before leaving them.

The two ate and chatted about whatever came up. After splitting a piece of chocolate cake for dessert, the waitress wet the billon the table, taking their plates away. Aidan immediately picked it up and read over it before setting the amount of cash in there along with the tip. Aidan stood up and offered his hand to Tressa who smiled and took it, standing up. He helped her put on her jacket before leading her towards the door. "Thank you for paying."

"Of course. I'm the guy, I'm supposed to pay." He grinned which made Tressa roll her eyes. He grabbed her hand as he pulled her down the street.

"Where are we going?" She asked through her giggles as he dragged her to a nearby park. The two entered and started walking around. Along the way, they passed an ice cream stand and each bought a chocolate cone. "It's so beautiful out tonight." Tressa said, gazing up at the sky.

Aidan looked over at her and smiled. "Yes, it is." Not talking about the stars.

She glanced over at him and noticed him starring. She giggled and grabbed his free hand again, dragging him to the swings on the right. "Come on. I love the swings!" She jumped on a swing and pouted at him as he stood to the side, hands stuffed in his pockets. "Well, aren't you going to push me?" She asked.

Aidan laughed and walked behind her and started to gently push her. This was one of the things that Aidan liked about her. She was such a child at times, making him smile. He looked at his watch and noticed that he had to get her home soon so he started to slow down her swing. Once it was at a stop, he grasped the ropes of the swing and she leaned back against his chest. She turned her head slightly to look up at him and smiled softly which he returned. Tressa seemed to notice how close they were but just kept starring into his green eyes. She saw him start to lean down closer to her and she closed her eyes, waiting for what was about to happen. Before their lips could touch, his cell phone went off and they jerked away form each other.

He grabbed his phone from his pocket and groaned when he saw it was his mother calling. He answered the phone and quickly finished the conversation as Tressa stood a few feet away from him. "That was my mom. She's going to meet us outside the restaurant soon. We should get going back there." He explained.

Tressa nodded her head and the two started to walk out of the park. Cautiously, Aidan reached his hand out and grasped her hand, not knowing if she'd feel awkward about it because of their almost kiss. Instead, she smiled and ripped his hand tighter. Once they made it to the restaurant, Aidan's mom was already waiting. Aidan helped her in the car again before jumping in on the other side. "Did you guys have fun?" Haylie asked, starting to drive to Tressas' house.

Tressa and Aidan smiled at each other, hands still laced together. "Yes I did. You're son is such a gentleman." Tressa gushed, making Aidan start to blush.

Haylie stole a glance of them through her mirror, smiling. "Is that so? He doesn't seem to act like one at home. It must only be for you Tressa." She said softly, making Aidan blush even deeper.

Tressa giggled and leaned her head against his shoulder, testing out the feeling. She liked the butterflies that erupted throughout her stomach as he wrapped an arm around her, keeping his other hand grasped in hers. After a ten minute drive, they arrived at her house. Tressa thanked Haylie and smiled at her before Aidan, once again, helped her out of the car and walked her to the front door. Before going in, she turned around to face him and smiled. "I had a great time. Thank you for everything."

Aidan smiled. "So does that mean another date in my future?" He asked half teasingly, half serious.

Tressa giggled. "I'd like that." She smiled as he sighed a sigh of relief.

"Good. Maybe sometime during the week." He shoved his hands in his pockets again and rocked on the balls of his feet.

"Perfect. I'll just have to talk to my dad and see what he says. I'm sure that'll be fine though."

"Great. So I'll see you in school on Monday?" He asked

"Yes, Monday. Tomorrow is my birthday so if you wanted to call me that would be sweet." She bit her lip nervously. She had never felt this incredible yet nervous before, especially around a guy. Her palms were starting to sweat a little bit and the butterflies continued to fly.

"I'll do that." He leaned in and kissed her on the cheek. "Good night Tressa and happy birthday."

"Thank you. Good night." She leaned against the door as he walked back to his car, grinning brightly. Once he was in his car, he waved to her before driving away. She waved back and decided it was time to walk inside. Her family was in the living room, minus the twins who were already in the bed. "I'm back." She announced, gaining everyone's attention.

Gabriella shrieked. "How was it?"

"Perfect." Tressa breathed out, leaning against the door frame smiling.

"Where'd you go? What'd he do? What'd you guys talk about? I need the details Tressa!" Gabriella asked quickly. Everyone laughed at her excitement.

"Before I tell you Aunt Gabi, I want to tell my dad first, alone." She said and turned her attention to Troy who looked confused.

"You want to tell me alone? Why?" He asked, but happy on the inside that she still wanted to talk to him.

"I'll let you know. Now come on, let's talk in the kitchen." She started walking to the kitchen followed by a confused Troy. She grabbed a cookie from the counter and settled on one of the chairs. He joined her, waiting for her to tell him. "He took me to the same place you took mom on your first date." She said softly.

Troy smiled, piecing it all together. "So this is why you wanted to tell me first?" He asked and watched as she nodded her head.

"I remember you telling me about that place and smiled when I found out he took me there because it was sentimental value, you know?" She asked and Troy nodded his head. "So anyways, we ate and talked to get to know each other better. I told him about mom." She whispered and watched as her father smiled softly. "I hope you're not upset but he noticed I was getting a little emotional and I felt the need to explain to him."

"I'm not upset Tress. You were going to tell him anyways so don't worry about it. Are you ok now?" He asked as he gave her a huge hug.

Tressa giggled and hugged him back, burying her head in his shoulder. "I am now. I just needed a hug from you." She smiled as he kissed the top of her head but didn't pull back from the hug.

Eventually, the two pulled apart. "So, did you have a good time?" He asked as they took their seats again.

Tressa immediately smiled. "Yes. He is so sweet, daddy. He paid for the dinner and then we walked to the park. We pretty much just talked to get to know each other. He was such a gentleman too. He helped me in the car, out of the car; he helped me in my chair and stand up. He's simply amazing." She bit her lip again, knowing that she was blushing like crazy talking about him.

"Good. He better be treating you like a princess." He stated seriously, earning a giggle from her. He saw the way her face lit up when Aidans' name was mentioned and the way her eyes shone as she talked about the date. He could tell that she really liked him and he was happy. Even though she's still young, he's happy that she found someone that treats her the way she deserves to be.

"He is daddy, don't worry. If he didn't, I wouldn't be wasting my time on him." She smiled. "A guy should treat me the way you treated mom."

Troy simply smiled at his daughter. "You are truly a blessing Tressa. If something ever happened to you, I wouldn't be able to live."

"Same here daddy." She walked back over to him and hugged him tightly, placing a kiss on his cheek. "I love you."

"I love you too sweetie."

They pulled away and smiled. "I'm going to go change real quick. I'll be back down in a minute." Tressa said as she left the room. She told her aunt she would be back down before changing really quickly. She arrived a few minutes later in her pajamas and told Ryan and Gabriella about her night while Troy listened from the doorway. Ryan caught Troys' gaze and they both smiled, thinking that maybe, just maybe, this whole dating thing wouldn't be too bad as long as it was with Aidan.

* * *

**Ok, so I know there wasn't a flashback in this chapter but I thought it was just right to end it there. I might have two flashbacks in the next chapter. The next day is Tressas' birthday so there might be even more than 2 flashbacks. You'll see the house kind of dull as everyone is grieving in their own way, so a warning that it might be sad. **

**Also, I had to make Ryan go all over-protective on Tressa since Troy was trying to accept the date. And Gabriella had to yell at him! Loved it! **

**Thanks for all of the reviews! **


	8. Chapter 8

**Awww…thank you for the sweet reviews! I'm so thrilled that you guys like this story because I love writing it! **

**I absolutely love writing about the relationship between Troy and Tressa (as you have probably noticed ;)) so that's why you read sweetness between them! Also, Tressa and Aidan have such a sweet, innocent romance that puts a smile on my face! **

**So…this chapter is sad. I warned you at the end of the last chapter that this one is the anniversary of Sharpays' death and Tressas' birthday. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize.**

* * *

_12:00 am_

"Happy birthday to me." Tressa whispered to herself as she watched the clock change. She sighed as she rolled onto her back, starring at the ceiling. Her birthday was such a bittersweet day. Don't get her wrong, she was excited about her fourteenth birthday, but she was hurting on the inside. Her mother would never see her turn a year older. She wouldn't be able to celebrate with her and hug her saying 'my little girl is growing up.' Nothing. Instead, Tressa would put on a happy face during the day, for her family, before crying herself to sleep at night. Her eyes began to water as she thought about her mother, wondering what she was like. Everyone told her that she was just like her mother but you know the saying, seeing is believing; she would never see that or live that. Instead, she had to live with the photographs and stories her dad gave and told her.

The thought of the pictures pulled her out of her thoughts. Tressa sat up and quietly got out of bed, tip toeing to her closet after turning her desk lamp on. Standing on her tippy toes, she reached up to the top shelf and pulled out a bright pink, sparkly box. She giggled softly, remembering how her Uncle Ryan had told her that was Sharpays' favorite color when she was younger. She walked back into her room, accidentally knocking over her baseball bat near her desk but ignoring it, and sat cross legged on her bed, opening the box. Immediately, she grabbed a handful of pictures that were inside the box, smiling softly.

The first on she saw was of Sharpay and Troy at their prom. At the time, they were simply friends, attending prom together. That night was what actually brought them together. Her mother looked gorgeous. She was wearing a form fitting red dress, showing off her amazing curves. It was strapless and floor length, covered with a hint of glitter. Tressa covered her mouth with her hand as she smiled brightly, tears coming to her eyes again. "Wow." Her mother was beautiful but looked perfect next to her father, who was dressed in a classic black tux. What made Tressa giggle was the goofy faces her parents were throwing to the camera. Crossed eyed and tongue sticking out of their mouth.

Suddenly, her door opened and she jumped before sighing with relief when she saw her Uncle Ryan walking into the room, closing the door behind her. "What are you doing up Tressa?" He asked as he walked over to the bed. He sat down next to her and smiled. "Ah, prom." He took the picture form her hand and looked it over, a layer of tears forming in his eyes. Tressa watched him, silently studying his reaction. He leaned back against the headboard of her bed and laid down, crossing his ankles. "Has your dad told you that this was the day they started to date?" He asked.

Tressa nodded as she laid down next to him, resting her head on his shoulder. "Yeah. That's really all he told me about that."

Ryan fell into a trance like state, thinking about the night before smiling over at Tressa. "I'll tell you the story. But don't tell your father, he doesn't want anyone to know how much of a softy he is." He joked before telling the story.

"_Hello Sunshine." Troy greeted a 17 year old Sharpay as she walked over to him. Troy was sitting down at the table, watching as Sharpay had fun dancing with her friends. His tie was un-tied and his suit jacket was hanging on the back of his chair. The top two buttons of his shirt were unbuttoned and the sleeves were rolled up to his elbows. Sharpay just giggled before taking a seat on his lap, earning a chuckle from him. "What exactly are you doing Payday?" He asked as he wrapped his arms around her. _

_She leaned back into him, resting her back against his chest. "I happen to like this seat. It's comfier than the other chairs." She smiled as she leaned her head in the crock of his neck. She suddenly sat up and turned to face him, sitting on his lap sideways. She brushed his hair out of his eyes. "You don't look like you're enjoying yourself. Are you ok?" She cupped his cheek with one hand._

"_I am Pay. Don't worry about me, as long as you're having fun then that's all that matters." He covered her hand with his, lacing their fingers together. He kissed the back of her hand before setting their enlaced hands by her side. _

"_You are too sweet for your own good Troy." Sharpay smiled softly before leaning in and kissing him on the cheek. She pulled away before giggling and wiping the lip gloss off of his cheek. _

_Troy chuckled and let her wipe his cheek. Once she was done, he grabbed her hand and rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand. She glanced down at him and smiled, getting lost in his eyes. He gazed back before cupping her face gently, leaning his head up. She closed her own eyes and leaned down, their lips meeting in a soft kiss. His thumbs gently rubbed her cheeks as she put her hands on his shoulders. After a few seconds, the two pulled away, Troy leaning his forehead against Sharpays. He opened his eyes to see hers still closed before they fluttered open. Once they connected eyes, the two smiled, both showing that there were no regrets. "Shar, I've been wanting to tell you this for a long time. For the past few moths, I've been developing these feelings for you. At first I didn't think anything of them, thinking they might pass but now I realize that they just kept getting stronger and I needed to tell you about them. I just hope you feel the same way." He finished, turning his head to look away from her. _

_Sharpay, who had tears in her eyes, gently grabbed his chin and turned his head to face her again. "It's about time Bolton." She teased before capturing his lips in another kiss._

"He really is a softy." Tressa giggled, still looking at the picture in awe.

Ryan chuckled. "He was, but only for your mother."

Tressa looked over at him and saw his bottom lip start to quiver and his eyes fill with tears. She leaned over and pulled him in for a hug. Ryan pulled Tressa against his chest, leaning his head on top of her head that was tucked under his chin. Tressa could feel the wetness on her head and she knew that he was crying. Because he was crying, she started to cry too. She rubbed his back soothingly as he placed a kiss on the top of her head. "I love you Uncle Ryan." She whispered.

Ryan smiled as he pulled away form the hug. "I love you too sweetie." He kissed her forehead before standing up. "You need to get some sleep Tress."

Tressa nodded her head, wiping her cheeks. "I will. I'll see you in the morning Uncle Ryan."

Ryan smiled as he walked over to her door. "Good night Tressa." He walked out of the room before poking his head back in the room. "Happy birthday dearie." He blew a kiss at her and listened to her giggle before walking back to his room.

Tressa dropped the smile as Ryan left the room. How could she have a happy birthday when it's the anniversary of her mothers' death? She shook her head and grabbed a DVD from the box and looked at it questioningly. After debating about watching it for a minute, she reached over to her desk and pulled her lap top onto her lap. She placed the DVD in the disk slot and waited for the screen menu to pop up. Once it did, she clicked play and watched as her parents came onto the screen, along with her family. _"Say hello to the newly wed couple." _Her Uncle Chads' voice was heard since he was the one filming. As he said that, Troy and Sharpay turned to the camera as they danced together on the dance floor.

"_You're such a dork Danforth."_ Sharpay said with a smile before sticking her tongue out at the camera. Troy flashed a smile before dipping his bride and spinning her around. It was then that Tressa realized that this was a tape of their wedding, noting Sharpays' gorgeous white wedding dress. Tressa cupped her mouth again and choked back a sob. They looked so happy.

"_Seriously Chad, we're trying to dance on our wedding day. Go bug another happy, in-love couple."_ Troy said and put his hand over the camera to shove it away.

"_Hey, this is rented, careful." _

Tressa giggled through her tears. "That's my Uncle Chad for you." She whispered to herself before another image appeared on the screen. This time, it was of Sharpay, whose stomach was bulging, obviously pregnant. She was wearing a loose shirt, probably her fathers', and baggy sweat pants to fit her swollen abdomen. _"Troy, please, get the camera off of me."_ She said in a distressed voice. She sounded and looked tired.

She heard her fathers' chuckle in the back ground. _"Come on Pay, you look gorgeous and I want the camera and whoever watches this to see that."_

"_Don't sweet talk me Bolton."_

"_Hey, you're a Bolton now too."_

Sharpay rolled her eyes and placed a hand on her back as she leaned over to get something out of the refrigerator. Troy immediately set the camera down, facing them and ran over to her, helping her stand up straight. _"You shouldn't be doing that Pay. You go sit down and I'll get it for you."_

Tressa heard Sharpay sigh loudly. _"God Troy, I'm not a piece of glass. I won't break." _

"_I know. I just want you to be safe."_ Troy whispered as he looked down.

Sharpay smiled as she lifted his head up. _"I know Troy. I'm sorry for snapping. I'll go sit down and you can pamper me all you want."_ She teased as they shared a sweet kiss.

The screen went black as Troy hit the stop button on the camera. Tressa closed her lap top and set it on the floor before lying down and sobbing into her pillow, covering herself with her blanket. Watching those videos was too much for her. After a few minutes of crying, Tressa stood up and walked out of the room, with her stuffed monkey, and walked into her fathers' room. She crawled onto the bed and quietly settled herself under the covers before leaning her head on her Troys' shoulder, needing her fathers' comfort. She was still crying, giving up on trying to stop the tears.

Troy must have woken up because he turned around and wrapped an arm around her while yawning. "Hey baby girl." He kissed the top of her head, not knowing that she was almost breaking on the inside since he was half asleep.

"Daddy." She choked out before sobbing again, burying her head in his shoulder. Troy immediately woke up fully as he embraced her in a tight hug. She wrapped her arms around his torso tightly, not wanting to let him go. Troy felt her bunching his shirt up into her hands as she cried until no end. After glancing at the clock, 12:48am, he put two and two together and started crying silently as he tried to calm down his daughter.

"Tressa, baby, please breath." Troy said frantically as he realized that she wasn't going to calm down anytime soon. Tressa tried to stop but she couldn't stop crying. Troy rubbed her back soothingly but it wasn't really doing anything for her. "Tressa, look at me." He whispered and she lifted her head up to look at him. His heart broke at the sight of his daughter, eyes red as she hadn't stopped sobbing. "I know how much it hurts, baby girl, but you have to take deep breaths. If you don't, you're going to hurt yourself." He watched as she took in a few shaky breaths, hiccupping a few times.

Once she could breath a little bit better, she turned her head back towards her father. "I'm sorry I scared you daddy." She whispered, tears still falling from her eyes.

"I know you are. Is this what I think it's about?" Troy asked as he pulled Tressa onto his lap and tucked her head under his chin. He felt Tressa nod against his shoulder. "I know I always say that you shouldn't cry because it makes my heart break, but today is an exception. Just let it all out Tressa." As soon as he said that she started to sob again, knowing that he was okay with that. He leaned his head atop of hers and broke down too, as the father and daughter held onto each other, needing each other right now at the most.

Twenty minutes later, Troy was watching as Tressa slept, running a hand through her hair repeatedly as he used to do when she was a little girl and sick. Tressa had literally cried herself to sleep which almost killed him. He always hated when his baby girl would cry. He leaned down and placed a kiss to her forehead before closing his own eyes, hoping to get at least a little bit of sleep.

* * *

After a restless night of sleep, Troy woke up at 9:37 in the morning. He glanced down and saw Tressa still sleeping, one arm tightly holding on to his and her other hand wrapped around her stuffed monkey. He smiled softly and brushed the hair away from her face causing her to stir in her sleep before waking up slowly. She opened her eyes and glanced around, trying to find out where she was. Once she saw Troy, she smiled and continued to rest her head on his shoulder. "Good morning Tress." He kissed her forehead.

"I guess." She sighed as she looked down at her monkey.

Troy didn't really know what to say so he just kept on hugging her, hoping it would make her feel al little better. "It's your birthday Tress. Happy birthday."

"How can my birthday ever be a good day?" She asked before standing up, upset and needed to be alone.

"Tress-"

"Just leave me alone." She left the room and ran into her own room, slamming the door shut and locking. She leaned her back against the door before sliding down it, landing on the floor with her knees brought up to her chest and her head resting on her knees.

Troy sighed and out his head in his hands, eyes watering up. He knew that she just needed some time to herself but at the same time knew that she needed him and she'll go to him when the time is right. Troy lay back down and buried his head in the pillow, needing time to let out a crying session.

Tressa lifted her head up and stood up, walking over to her bed. She lay down and buried herself under the covers while grabbing a tissue form her night stand and wiped her cheeks. Just as her eyes were closing for another few hours of sleep, her cell phone went off. She quickly took it off the night stand and glanced at the caller id. She smiled slightly before answering. "Hello?"

"Hi Tressa, its Aidan."

Tressa bit her lip to keep from smiling and sat up in her bed. "Hey. What's up?"

"I was just calling to say happy birthday."

"Oh, thank you."

She heard Aidan chuckle before he spoke again. "You're welcome. I also wanted to say sorry. I remember what you said about your mother and wanted to know that if you need anything today I'm always here for you."

"Oh thanks Aidan. That means a lot to me." Tressas' smile faltered as he mentioned her mother.

"Don't thank me. Are you ok right now?"

Tressa sighed, fingering the edge of her blankets. "Not really but I will be soon." She smiled slightly as an idea came to her mind. "Do you think you can go somewhere with me. Right now?"

"Are you sure? You don't want time to yourself?"

"No. I need to do this and I need you to be there with me. I'll meet you at the park in 15 minutes. Is that ok?"

"That's perfect. I'll see you then."

"Alright, thank you."

"Don't thank me. I'm here for you."

"I know. Well, bye."

He chuckled. "Bye Tressa."

Tressa hung up the phone and threw it on her bed. She quickly changed into a blue sweat suit with a white tank top underneath. She quickly put her hair in a pony tail before grabbing her phone and keys. She quietly opened her door and peeked her head out, making sure the coast was clear. After seeing nobody, she slipped from her room and locked it with her key before walking down the stairs and leaving the house quietly. As she walked to the park, she kicked a stone as she sighed sadly. She looked up and noticed that it was cloudy, about to rain. "What a coincidence, that's how I feel." She shook her head as she continued her journey.

Once she arrived, she saw Aidan already there, sitting on a wooden bench. She walked over and tapped him on the shoulder, startling her. Aidan smiled and stood up, immediately engulfing her in a warm embrace. She buried her head in the crock of his neck and hugged him back tightly, needing some support form him. He stroked her hair as she closed her eyes, breathing in his scent. After a few minutes, she pulled away and gave him a small smile. "How are you?" He asked softly, throwing an arm around her shoulders as the two left the park.

"I don't know. This day is always hard for me, every year. I kind of snapped at my dad this morning to. I just need to gather my thoughts, you know?" She asked, looking up at him.

"That's a good start Tress." He smiled and gave her shoulder a little squeeze. "So, where are we going?"

Tressa leaned her head on his shoulder. "Just a place where I can let everything out. I'm going to need you so you won't leave will you?"

"Of course not. I'm here for you for as long as you need." He placed a kiss on her temple and she smiled.

They arrived at their destination and Aidan looked down at her, unsurely. "Are you sure you want to do this Tressa?"

Tressa looked up at him and smiled. "It's something I have to do. I'm absolutely sure." He nodded his head and she grabbed his hand, following a pathway until they made it to where she wanted to go. The two sat down and Tressa starred at the tomb stone in front of her, getting teary eyed already. She reached her hand out and traced the letters on the stone. Aidan watched as Tressa started to enter her own world as she silently started to cry. All he could do was hold onto her.

She turned her head up and smiled. "This is my mom." She whispered as she turned by to the grave. "Sorry it took me so long to come back here mom. It's not exactly the easiest thing for me. Well, for starters, this is Aidan. We went out last night and we had a great time." She smiled up at Aidan. "Daddy wasn't exactly taking it easy at first but he eventually came around." She giggled. "We're doing ok though mom. Daddy is doing an amazing job and I'm so proud of him. I recently got an assignment for English class that asks me to write an essay about our hero and of course I chose dad. But, anyways, Aunt Gabi and Uncle Ryan came to visit with the twins and I'm so excited. I missed them. On a different note, I saw a video last night, well this morning at mid night and it was a clip of you and daddy dancing at your wedding and another one from when you were pregnant with me. You looked amazing in both. You were glowing with happiness mommy."

Tressas' voice started to waver as the tears became more persistent. Aidan squeezed her shoulders letting her know that she was there. She grabbed his free hand and enlaced her fingers. "I also saw a picture of you from prom. You and dad looked so funny when you made the funny faces." She laughed as she remembered the picture. "Uncle Ryan also told me that was the day that you guys got together. He misses you a lot too. He was crying earlier. Of course, daddy misses you too. He tries to be strong for me but I know that on the inside he's struggling with his emotions. He and I hold each other up. If I didn't have him I wouldn't know what I would do."

As if on cue, her cell phone rang with the special ring tone for her father. She quickly answered the phone after taking a few deep breaths. "Hello?"

"Oh thank god, I thought something had happened to you. Where are you?"

"I'm sorry daddy. I'm with Aidan. He called me and I needed to do something and he offered to stay with me. I just needed to go somewhere to get my thoughts together."

"Tress, you know you can always come to me right?"

"Of course. I thought you needed some time to yourself too."

"It doesn't matter what I want Tress. You are my world and if you need someone I will push everything aside and be there for you. Don't ever doubt that."

Tressa sighed. "I know that. But sometimes you don't need to be the strong one. Sometimes I need to be strong for you because I know on the inside that you're not ok and you want to just let it all out. Sometimes you need to depend on me daddy."

Troy smiled, even though she couldn't see it. "I love you Tressa. And you're right. Later on tonight you and I are going to sit down and talk. Ok?"

Tressa nodded. "That sounds perfect. And to answer your question from before I'm at moms' grave right now. I'm just filling her in on everything. And don't worry- Aidan is the shoulder I need right now. I'll be home soon."

"Tressa, are you sure you're ok. I can be there in 5 minutes if you need me."

Tressa started to cry harder and looked at Aidan. "You know what, I think this is something that you and I need to do together daddy. I would love if you came here."

"I'll be there before you can even blink. I love you Tressa."

"I love you too daddy. Very much."

Tressa hung up the phone and put it in her pocket. She started crying even more and leaned her head on Aidans' shoulder. "I'm sorry Aidan. But this really is something I need to do with my dad. I thought I could do this but I can't. I need him."

"Oh Tressa, don't apologize. This is something you and him need to do. I'll wait here until your dad comes. The offer still stands about the phone call. If you need me at all today then you can just call. I'll answer."

Tressa leaned up and kissed his cheek. "Thank you. You're amazing."

A few minutes later, Tressa looked up and saw Troy enter the cemetery. She immediately stood up and ran over to him, launching herself into his arms, crying into his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her tightly as he nodded at Aidan, silently saying thank you to him. Aidan smiled and rubbed Tressa's back before leaving the father-daughter alone.

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**Well, that's part 1 of this day. I don't know how many parts there will be! This chapter was mainly Tressa and Troy so the next one will be Ryan and Gabriella. I hope I didn't make you guys cry at all! Lol I know I did at some points! Thanks again for the reviews, I love them! **


	9. Chapter 9

**Awww…thank you! You guys are so supportive!! **

**This chapter is dedicated to neila cross. Your reviews are so sweet and your compliments are amazing! Thank you!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize. **

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Ryan woke up at 10:23 in the morning, not wanting to get up. After he left Tressas' room earlier, he cried himself to sleep silently. But could you blame him, it was the anniversary of his twins' death. Someone in his life that no one could even come close to replacing. She was always the one that he could always go to for everything. Sharpay was always behind him, supporting him and catching him when he needed it. When she died, he felt like a piece of him died with her. He remembered waiting in the waiting room while his sister, twin sister, was giving birth to his niece.

_25 year old Ryan was nervously sitting in the waiting room at Albuquerque General Hospital waiting to hear the news of his sister. His parents, Vance and Lyndsey were sitting across from him and Gabriella, his newly wed wife, was sitting in the chair next to him, smiling. Jack and Lucy Bolton, Troys' parents, were sitting next to his parents. They had been here for about 10 hours. It was now 12:15 in the afternoon (they arrived at 2:50 in the morning if you look back to chapter 3). He was exhausted and just wanted to see his family. _

_Suddenly, they saw two doctors practically forcing Troy to the waiting room, tears streaming down his face as he shouted at them. Lucy stood up and immediately pulled Troy in for a hug. He turned away from the doctors and wrapped his arms around her, sobbing into her shoulder. Jack joined them and held onto his family s everyone else walked over to him to see what was wrong. Troy lifted his head to face everyone. "Something happened to her." He choked out. Vance and Lyndsey looked at each other, face full of fear and worry. "After she gave birth she just passed out. I don't know what happened. The doctors told me to wait out here." He continued sobbing as his parents comforted him. _

_Vance had embraced Lyndsey as she started crying. He rubbed her back and whispered comforting words to her. Ryan just starred ahead, not showing any emotion as his face. Gabriella had pulled him in for a hug but he didn't do anything, he just stood there. Did Troy just say that something happened to his sister? He watched as his brother-in-law broke down in front of him, holding onto his parents tightly. Jack and Lucy led Troy over to a chair and carefully sat him down. Soon enough, everyone was sitting down, holding onto each other as they waited for the doctor to come out._

_After waiting for about half an hour, the family doctor, Dr. Hyler, walked out into the waiting room, a grim look on her face. Everyone looked up at him and knew what she was going to say after seeing the look on her face. "I'm so sorry. We tried everything we could do." She said sorrowfully as tears began to cloud her own vision. Troy looked at her for a minute before breaking down again, his shoulder shaking as his parents held onto him tightly again. Lyndsey sobbed loudly, clutching onto her husband, who was also crying, for dear life. Ryan turned to Gabriella as she too broke down, leaning on him for support. After coming to his senses, he started crying as well, burying his head in Gabriella's neck. She wrapped her arms around him and rubbed his back. People passing by glanced at the family sadly before continuing on their way. _

_A nurse, about the age of 40, came out and glanced at her clip board. "Mr. Bolton?" She called out quietly, feeling sorry for the couple. Troy looked up at the nurse and didn't bother drying his eyes or cheeks. "First of all, I'm very sorry for your loss." Troy held back an eye roll as he continued crying. "But, there is a little girl that I'm sure would love to meet her father." She smiled slightly. _

_Troy swallowed and stood up, trying to put on a smile. "A little girl? I have a daughter?" He asked quietly, smiling at the thought of a daughter. The nurse smiled and nodded her head to the side. _

"_If you come with me this way I can introduce you two." She said as Troy turned back to his mother and his mother-in-law and held out his hands. _

"_Come with me mom, Lyndsey?" he asked tearfully, knowing he would break down if they wasn't there with him. Lucy smiled and grabbed his hand as she gave Jack her purse. Lyndsey smiled and grabbed his other hand as well, smiling at Vance. _

_The nurse led the three to the nursery and they stood in front of the window, looking in on all of the babies in the little bassinets. The nurse looked around and smiled when she found baby Bolton. "She's this one right in the corner." She pointed to the bassinet that was in the right hand corner closer to them. The little baby, who was wrapped in a pick blanket with a pink bonnet on her head, was sleeping peacefully, head resting to her right side. Troy smiled and swallowed, trying to hold back his tears as he held one hand on the glass. He felt his mom squeeze his hand reassuringly as he gazed at his little girl. _

"_Can I hold her?" Troy asked as he turned his attention to the nurse. She nodded her head and led him into the room, maneuvering around the other bassinets until they reached his daughters'. The nurse carefully picked up the sleeping baby and placed her in Troys' awaiting arms. "I'll give you two some time." The nurse smiled and left the room. Troy glanced at his mom and Lyndsey, smiling briefly before focusing his attention to the little girl in his arms. She had opened her eyes and was starring up at him with her blue eyes. She raised her little arms up and Troy grabbed one of them, smiling as she tried to wrap her fingers around his pointer finger. "Hey baby girl, it's your daddy. You are absolutely beautiful." He cooed quietly as he rubbed her cheek softly. "You look like your mother." He choked out as he felt tears running down his cheeks. She reached an arm up and unknowingly started to wipe his tears away with her tiny fist. He grabbed her hand and started to stroke his thumb across the back of it. "It's going to be me and you princess. Although, you have an amazing two sets of grandparents and loving aunts and uncles. I promise to always tell you about your mother, who was an angel to me, just like you." He leaned down and placed a kiss on her forehead. "We're going to be just fine baby girl." He whispered. _

_The nurse came back in and smiled at him. "I talked to the doctor and she said it would be ok for you to bring her out to meet the family, but just for a little while." She smiled as Troy looked up at her, grinning. The two left the room with his baby girl curled up to his chest, sleeping again. _

_Lucy and Lyndsey covered their mouths as they held back their tears. "Oh my, she's gorgeous Troy." Lyndsey said as she stroked the little girls' hair, which was a shade of blonde. Lucy placed a hand on Troys' arm and smiled a watery smile at him as he looked at her. _

"_Do you want to hold her Lyndsey?" Troy asked quietly as she nodded her head furiously. Troy held out his baby for her and placed her in Lyndseys' arms. Troy gave his mother a hug as he watched Lyndsey gently rock his daughter. _

"_What are you going to name her Troy?" His mom asked. _

_Troy glanced at his daughter and smiled. "Tressa. Tressa Elizabeth Bolton." _

_The mothers gasped and smiled down at their grand daughter. Lyndsey held out Tressa for Lucy who happily took her into her arms. She noticed that Tressa had woken up and was looking around at her surroundings. Her face scrunched up and she started crying loudly, throwing her arms in the air. Troy immediately picked her up and smiled down at her. "It's ok baby girl, daddy's here." He whispered as he rocked her gently just like Lyndsey had. He wiped her tears away and she immediately started to stop crying after realizing it was her father. She tried to smile up at him but couldn't exactly get it out. Tressa cuddled up to her fathers' chest as she continued to look up at him. "I can take her out to meet everyone for a little bit." He explained as they started to walk to the waiting room. Once he got there, he saw some of the gang already there, including Chad and Taylor and Jason and Kelsi. "Hey guys." He announced and everyone turned their heads to them. Jack, Vance and Ryan all ran over to him and stared at Tressa. The mothers walked over to the gang, noticing that they already heard about Sharpay since they were crying hysterically. _

"_Wow." Ryan breathed out as he gazed at his niece. She looked exactly like Sharpay. "She's beautiful. What's her name?" Ryan asked as he touched her cheek gently, gaining Tressas' attention. She looked at him and raised her tiny arms out to him. _

_Troy laughed and gently handed her to Ryan. "Seems as if Tressa Elizabeth wants you to hold her, Uncle Ryan." He smiled softly as Ryan nodded his head, tears streaming down his face._

"_Look at her." Jack breathed out. "I'm so proud of you Troy." He patted his son on the back before pulling him in for a comforting embrace. Troy hugged him back tightly before pulling back and walked over to Gabriella and the gang. Gabriella pulled him in for a hug as the two continued to cry, Troy needed support from her. After hugging her, Kelsi and Taylor each gave him a hug too before Jason and Chad man hugged him. "Would saying congratulations be inappropriate to say?" Chad asked, not wanting to upset his friend about bringing up Sharpay._

_Troy shook his head. "No. But can I talk to you alone man?" _

_Chad nodded his head and the two walked to an empty hallway before Troy slid down the wall and sat on the ground, crying into his hands. "What am I going to do? I can't raise a baby by myself." He cried, leaning into Chad as he gave his friend a comforting hug. "It's so hard to celebrate this when Sharpay is gone." He sobbed into Chads' shoulder. "It hurts so much."_

"_Troy, I know how much it hurts. Sharpay meant something to us too. She holds a special place in all of our hearts. But you want to know something Troy?" He asked as Troy looked up at him. "I know, wait we all know, that you'll be able to take care of your daughter. I know that you're going to be an amazing parent. We'll all be here for you whenever you need us." Troy nodded his head leaned it against the wall behind him. _

"_Chad, Pay and I have always talked about having kids. We already painted the nursery room. We bought all of the clothes for Tressa. We bought everything we needed. How does it go from 'we' to 'me?' I can't do this. I need her Chad, I need her so much. I can't do this alone." Troy sobbed, his shoulders shaking as he placed his head on his hands. "She was my world. My everything." _

_Chad watched as his best friend broke down in front of him, his whole body shaking as he cried loudly. He felt completely useless. What more could he do other than tell him that everything would be ok. As he watched Troy, his own eyes started to water. Nobody would ever realize how much Sharpay meant to him. It was as if his whole world had crashed around him. His trance was interrupted when Jack walked around the corner with a crying Tressa in his arms. Troy snapped his head up and wiped his cheeks before standing up and taking his daughter from Jacks' arms. "Hey baby girl, don't cry. It's your grandpa." He soothed as Tressa wailed. He bounced her as he stroked her cheek soothingly. Instead of quieting down, Tressa kept on crying loudly, her adorable face scrunched up. "Please just stop crying. Everything will be ok." Troy said pleadingly as he started to cry again. Troy looked up at his father. "Right? Everything will be ok?" He asked as tears fell from his eyes. _

_Jack nodded his head and hugged Troy after Chad took Tressa from his arms. Troy hugged his father as he continued to let out his emotions. Jack felt tears come to his own eyes as he heard his son sob uncontrollably. "Everything will be ok. Your mother and I are here for you." He whispered and felt Troy nod against his shoulder. After about 10 minutes, Troy pulled away from his father and wiped his cheeks again. He gave Jack a slight smile before taking Tressa from Chad._

"_Thanks dad." Troy whispered as he noticed that Chad had calmed Tressa down and she was only crying slightly, not wailing. _

"_Don't thank me Troy. I'm here for you." He patted Troy on the back again before the three of them walked back to the waiting room with everybody else. When he arrived, he saw the same nurse from before and she smiled over at him. "I'm sorry but we need to take this little one back now." _

_Troy nodded his head and let everyone kiss her good bye before following the nurse down the hallway and to the nursery. He gently set Tressa into the bassinet and stroked her cheek before placing a kiss on her forehead. "I'll see you tomorrow baby girl. I love you so much Tressa." She started crying as if she knew that her father was leaving. Troy smiled a watery smile before leaving the room, knowing he had to leave before he broke down. "What time tomorrow can I come in?" He asked the nurse._

"_Visiting hours start at 9am." _

"_I'll be here then. Thank you for everything." He tried to smile but failed. _

"_It's my job sweetie. Again, I'm sorry about your loss. But I can tell that you're going to do a great job with your daughter." She smiled warmly at him that surprisingly reassured Troy. "Word of advice, don't push anybody away. It's going to be tough at first but you'll get through it with the help of your friends and family." _

_Troy gave her a hug. "Thank you. I'll try my best." _

_The nurse smiled again before walking back into the nursery. Troy sighed as he walked back to the waiting room, hands in his pockets. After filling out paper work about Sharpay and Tressa, including her birth certificate, he was ready to leave. Instead of going home, he took up his parents' offer and was planning on staying with them until Tressa was able to leave the hospital. As he drove home, he kept in mind what everyone said, they'll always be there for him, no matter what._

Ryan shook his head, feeling tears fall down his cheeks. He took a few deep breaths just as Gabriella started to wake up. She fluttered her eyes open and looked over at him, sitting up when she saw him crying. "Oh Ryan, come here." She held out her arms and he allowed her to hold her as he cried. Gabriella heard a door open and the pitter patter of little feet run into the room. Kylie and Adam climbed onto the bed and crawled over to the two. They hadn't seen their dad cry like this before so they didn't know what to do. Gabriella waved them over and they immediately hugged Ryan, unknowingly making him feel a little bit better.

Kylie suddenly smiled, thinking of an idea to make her daddy feel better. She tugged in Adams' hand and motioned for him to follow her. Gabriella watched, confused, as the two ran from the room and down the stairs. Kylie led her brother into the kitchen and climbed onto the counter after using a chair. She grabbed a few pieces of bread and handed them to Adam. "We're going to make breakfast for daddy."

Adam mouthed 'oh' to himself; it sounded like a good idea to him. He walked to the fridge and picked up the plastic bottle of Sunny-D and placed it on the island counter. Kylie handed him a cup and he poured some of the drink into the cup, missing by a mile. After getting some of it into the cup, he tried to twist the cap on but couldn't. Meanwhile, Kylie was putting the bread into the toaster, pushing the switch down to start it. Adam found the paper plates on the middle of the counter and took one. Kylie grabbed some eggs from the fridge but didn't know how to cook them. She shrugged her shoulders and cracked them over the plate, the egg spilling out all over the plate and her hands.

The two heard the front door open and looked at each other, scared. They heard some shuffling in the living room before the foot steps moved towards the kitchen. Troy walked into the kitchen and stopped in his tracks when he saw Kylie, egg covering her hands, and Adam, his hand frozen on the cap of the juice. The toaster made a 'ding' noise and the toast popped up. Troy crossed his arms over his chest and raised an eyebrow at the two. "What do you think you two troublemakers are doing?" He walked over to the counter and grabbed a towel, wiping Kylies' hands with it.

"Well, daddy was crying this morning and he always told us to do something nice to make the person feel better and that's what we're doing." Kylie explained innocently, looking up at her Uncle Troy who stopped wiping her hands and looked at her. "Is that bad?"

Troy set the towel and down and hugged both Kylie and Adam to him. "Your daddy is just a little sad today. Making breakfast for him was a good idea but you should have asked someone older to help you. I don't want you guys to hurt yourself."

"Is that about Aunt Pay that daddy told us about?" Adam asked.

Troy froze and slowly swallowed. "Um, yes it is. What did he tell you about her?"

"He said that she was his sister but she's in heaven, smiling down on us." Kylie answered before Adam jumped in.

"And he said that she loves us very much, even you Uncle Troy." Adam smiled before noticing that his uncle wasn't smiling. "Are you ok Uncle Troy?" He asked as he put a hand on Troys' cheek.

Troy grabbed his hand and smiled slightly. "I'm ok. I just miss Aunt Pay too."

"Do you want a hug Uncle Troysie?" Kylie asked as she opened up her arms for him. Troy nodded and picked her up, hugging her close to his chest. He picked Adam up with his other arm and held onto both of them. "I love you."

Troy smiled and kissed the top of their heads. "I love you guys too."

"Can you help us finish breakfast for daddy?" Kylie asked as Troy set them back down on the stools.

"Sure. But next time ask an adult ok?" The twins nodded. "Good. Now I see you already started the toast." Half an hour later, a full breakfast was made and Kylie and Adam were placing their parents' plates on a tray, complete with a red rose on the side. Troy was the one who picked up the tray as the twins ran ahead of them. He climbed the stairs and walked into the guestroom to see the family of four cuddled up with each other. "Hey guys, how are you feeling?" Troy asked as he set the tray down in between Gabriella and Ryan.

Ryan shrugged before Gabriella answered. "You know. What's all of this?" She asked, trying to avoid the subject. She gestured to the tray of food, confused.

"Daddy was upset this morning so we decided to make him breakfast." Kylie said as she smiled at her mother. "Don't worry- Uncle Troy helped us."

Ryan smiled and picked Kylie up, setting her on his lap. Adam cuddled up to his mother and Troy smiled. "I came home to see the twins in the kitchen, attempting to make breakfast. But it was mostly them who made it, I just watched and directed."

"How's Tressa?" Ryan asked as he picked up his plate off of the tray.

Troy sighed and looked down. "Not so good, but she'll be ok. She's sleeping on the couch right now. I'll leave you guys alone for a little while. If you need anything I'll be down stairs." He left the room, closing the door behind him, and walked down the stairs. He checked on Tressa in the living room before cleaning up the kitchen. As he was washing the dishes, he got lost in his own world, thinking about Sharpay.

_25 year old Sharpay just told Troy that she was pregnant. They were lying on the bed, Sharpay cuddling into Troys' side. Troys' hand was gently rubbing Sharpays' stomach soothingly as his other hand was enlaced with hers. Sharpay sighed happily and placed her free hand on Troys' bare chest. So, do you think it's a boy or a girl?" Sharpay asked._

_Troy chuckled and thought about it for a minute. "A boy. It's going to be a boy." He said confidently. _

"_Really? I'll be happy with either one." Sharpay kissed Troys' shoulder._

"_I will be too." Troy ran his hand through Sharpays' hair before placing a kiss there. "We're going to be parents Pay." _

_Sharpay giggled as she leaned her head up, kissing him sweetly on the lips. "I know. We've been trying for 2 years and it's actually happening." Before she could rest her head on his chest, he placed another kiss on her lips. "I love you Troy. So much." _

"_I love you too Pay. Forever and always." _

Troy shook his head, tears falling from his eyes again. "Forever and always." He muttered before smashing the glass cup in his hand against the sink wall angrily, the glass breaking loudly before a piece of the glass jammed into the palm of his hand. Instead of crying out in pain, he didn't feel anything. He didn't feel any pain or the blood flowing from the wound as he slid down the counters and landed on the ground, sobbing. The blood from his hand continued to run down his hand and onto his arm but he didn't care. Tressa ran into the room after hearing the glass breaking and stared, shocked, at her father. He was always the strong one, but here he was, sobbing uncontrollably. She snapped out of it and ran over to him, sitting on the ground next to him as she wrapped him in a hug. Troy leaned his head on her shoulder as she grabbed a towel that was hanging off of the stove handle and placed it over his cut. "Daddy, I'm going to pull the glass out." She whispered as he nodded, not caring about the cut at all. She carefully pulled the glass out and threw it onto the counter before covering his wound with the towel. She put some pressure on it and tied the towel to keep it in place. She dropped his hand and pulled him in for another hug, wrapping her arms around his neck, crying herself. "Daddy, don't cry." She sniffled.

Troy wrapped his arms around her torso and buried his head into her shoulder. Tressa rubbed his back and realized that this was one of the moments when he needed her to be the strong one. But seeing her father cry as bad as he was made her break down to as she leaned her head atop of his. The two stayed in that position for a good twenty minutes before Troys' crying finally slowed down. He moved his head off of Tressas' shoulder and looked up at her, brushing a curl behind her ear. "Thank you Tressa. You were right earlier, sometimes I need to lean on you and trust you to hold me like I do for you."

"I've never seen you cry like that before." She said quietly as she focused her attention onto the floor. She glanced back up at him and smiled. "Are you ok now?"

Troy nodded his head and pulled her onto his lap as he stretched his legs out. "I'm better, not exactly ok but I will be. Just like you baby girl. We have each other and our family who will always be here for us, just like they told me when I saw you for the first time." He smiled down on her.

Tressa grabbed the back of his wounded hand and noticed that the blood started to soak through the towel. "We should get you to the hospital dad. It looks like you might need some stitches."

Troy had forgotten that his hand was even bleeding until she mentioned it. "You're right." He said as he stood up. Tressa grabbed his free hand and pulled herself up only to be pulled into a tight hug. "I'm sorry I scared you Tress." He whispered in her ear before pulling away, kissing her forehead.

"It's ok. I'm glad you had a chance to let it all out, although I would have preferred you to do it without hurting yourself." She glanced at his hand as the two left a note for the family before driving to the hospital. Once they were there, Troy talked to the receptionist and the two waited in the waiting room for their doctor, which was still Dr. Hyler.

"Troy Bolton." She called out once she arrived. Troy stood up and embraced the doctor who had been there for him for the past years. "Didn't I tell you that I didn't want to see you here again?" She joked, poking him in the chest before focusing her attention at Tressa. "Look at you, all grown up." She said as Tressa giggled. The two hugged before they made their way to an empty room. Troy jumped up onto the edge of the bed as Tressa took a seat next to him. "Alright, what brings you here today?"

Troy lifted his hand up, taking the towel off to reveal a deep gash which was still bleeding. "I was washing dishes and the glass broke, cutting my hand." He explained, leaving out the detail of him breaking the glass purposely. "Tressa's thinking I need stitches."

Dr. Hyler grabbed his hand gently and inspected the gash. "I'm agreeing with her. It's pretty deep and another hint- it won't stop bleeding. I'm going to go and get the equipment I need. I'll be back in a few minutes. Keep the towel on it and put slight pressure on it as well." She let go of his hand and left the room.

"Does it hurt?" Tressa asked as she was the one holding the towel for him.

"A little, it's not too bad."

Dr. Hyler returned with a tray of tools that she placed down on the bed next to Troy. "Ok, first, I'm going to clean the gash. I'll tell you ahead of time that it will hurt a little bit. You might need to hold his hand Tressa." She teased; ignoring the playful glare was throwing her way. Tressa laughed and grabbed his free hand, taking off the towel from his other hand. The doctor took it from her hand and threw it in the trash. She picked up a dropper and grabbed his bad hand. "Ok, I'm going to clean it now. Try to stay as still as you can." She directed before squeezing the top of the dropper, the medicine oozing out as it cleaned the wound. Troy winced and looked at Tressa, not being able to look at the cut. After a few minutes, Dr. Hyler wiped away the rest of the blood before injecting a numbing medicine into his hand near the gash. "Now, I'm going to stitch it up. I just added something to numb your hand." She explained as she started to stitch up the wound. Tressa squeezed her fathers' hand reassuringly and he smiled at her. "There, that wasn't so bad was it?" The doctor asked as she took her gloves off. She threw the needle out as well before smiling at the two.

Troy looked down at his hand, which was covered by a white bandage, and winced. "It hurts." He pouted which made Tressa roll her eyes.

"You'll be fine dad. Now say thank you to Dr. Hyler."

Troy, in turn rolled his eyes at his bossy daughter. "Thank you. I'm sorry I wasted twenty minutes of your day." Troy jumped off of the bed and followed the doctor as they walked to the reception area.

"You're not wasting anytime so don't think that." She walked behind the receptionist counter. "Now, you're going to come back in two weeks so we can check on that. If you want, you can take some Tylenol or something to ease the pain."

"Thank you. I will when I get home." Troy pulled out his wallet and took his insurance card out, handing it to the family friend and doctor. She took care of the bill and handed it back to him.

"Come over here and give me a hug now." She demanded as Troy walked over and hugged her. "I know what day it is today and I'm sorry. If you need anything I'm here." She whispered. "You're doing an amazing job with Tressa as well."

Troy pulled away and smiled slightly. "Thanks. It's been hard today and it's not even half over."

"I know it must be hard for you but hang in there. I'm sure Sharpay would want you to be happy."

"Yeah, she would." Troy smiled, thinking about her. He shook his head and grabbed Tressas' hand. "You ready to go princess?"

She nodded her head before hugging the doctor again. "Yes. I just want to go home and hang out with you."

Troy smiled softly. "Sounds great. I'll see you soon Dr. Hyler. Thank you again."

"No need to thank me, I'm just doing my job. Take care of yourselves." She gave them another smile before walking down the hall and to her office. Tressa and Troy left the hospital and drove home, wanting to be alone. When they arrived home, they saw two other cars in the driveway, knowing exactly who they belonged to. "Did you know they were coming, dad?"

"Not a clue." They jumped out of the car and walked into the house, hearing voices coming form the living room. Once they walked in, everyone turned towards them. "Troy, sweetie." Lucy Bolton exclaimed as she ran over to him and pulled him in for a hug. Troy hugged his mom back before pulling away and placing a kiss on her cheek. "And Tressa, you look gorgeous." She smiled as she also hugged her granddaughter.

Troy then walked over to his father and pulled him in for a hug. He saw his parents in law also in the room and gave them a hug, kissing Lyndsey on the cheek. "You guys have no idea how much this means to me." Troy said softly as he glanced at his family.

Tressa also went around the room and hugged her grandparents. The last one was Jack so she kept her arms around him as she listened to her father. Ryan, Gabriella and the kids were there too, sitting on the couch. "We figured you two could use some support. I'm so glad Ryan and Gabriella could make it here too. Right now, we just need each other." Vance added.

Tressa, who didn't want to start crying again or be around a depressed family, changed the subject. "So, I went on a date last night." She said as everyone looked at her. "Yup, I had a great time. He's super sweet so you have nothing to worry about." She explained as she rocked on her heels.

"That's great Tressa." Lucy and Lyndsey said as they rushed over to hug her.

"Yeah, great." Her grandfathers muttered grimly, not wanting her to have a boyfriend. Troy laughed as he knew exactly how it felt.

"He really is a good guy." Troy defended as he sat down on the arm chair. Tressa smiled at him and sat down on the floor next to her cousins. "He's on the basketball team and treats her like she deserves to be treated." Just as he said that, the doorbell rang. Tressa was about to answer it but instead Vance did since he was closer.

"Tressa, someone's at the door for you." He called out as he walked into the room with Aidan following behind him.

Tressa smiled brightly and walked over to him, giving him a hug. "What are you doing here?"

Aidan smiled and held up her cell phone. "You left this earlier. I just thought you would want it back." She took the phone and pocketed it. "Are you ok?"

Tressa nodded her head, smiling when she realized her family was watching her. The grandmothers and Gabriella were smiling along with Troy and Ryan. Unfortunately, Vance and Jack weren't as thrilled as them. "Well, this is Aidan. Aidan, these are my grandparents." She introduced them.

Aidan waved at them and smiled. "It's nice to meet all of you. Did I interrupt something?"

"Of course not. We were actually just talking about you." Lucy said as she gave him a look over. She nodded approvingly along with Lyndsey. "Tressa said you guys went out last night."

Aidan blushed and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Yes we did. I had a great time. Your granddaughter is amazing." He smiled over at her which made her blush deeply as she bit her lip. Vance and Jack smiled at the compliment. Maybe he wasn't that bad. "Well, I'll get going now. I think today should be a family day for everyone."

"I'll walk you out." Tressa announced as she grabbed his hand.

"It was nice meeting everyone." Aidan said politely before him and Tressa made their way to the door. The two walked out onto the porch for some privacy. "You look like you're feeling better."

Tressa nodded her head. "A little bit. I'm just trying to hide it for now. Thanks for bringing my phone back. I appreciate it."

"Of course. I was going to come earlier but I had something to do with my mom."

"It's ok. I have it now, don't I?" The two laughed before Aidan shoved his hands in his pockets again. "Well, I'll see you at school?" She asked.

"Sure. I'll call you later tonight to say good night." He smiled as did Tressa. Before he left, he leaned forward slowly as Tressa leaned up. Their lips connected into a sweet kiss that only lasted for a few seconds, seeing as they were only 14. The two pulled apart and smiled at each other. "I'll talk to you later."

"Yeah, later." Tressa said breathlessly as she watched Aidan walk down the porch and towards his house. She took breath before a grin took over her face. She walked inside and into the living room.

"That took a while." Jack said earning a slap form his wife. "What? I was just stating a face."

"I was just saying bye is all." Tressa defended herself as she sat down on the ground again, not catching anybody's eye. She could feel her family staring at her but she didn't dare look up or else they would know what had happened. So, she did what she did best, changed the subject. "So, what's for lunch?"

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**Ok…well that was a crappy ending! I didn't exactly know how to end it. The beginning of the chapter was really sad, to me. I literally did cry as I was typing it up. I hope this chapter wasn't too bad, since I kind of lost it at the end. But, Tressa and Aidan kissed! Nothing too big but it was their first kiss! **

**Thanks again for all of the reviews form last chapter! **


	10. Chapter 10

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Aww…your reviews are amazing! Thank you so much!

**This chapter is dedicated to LoveItsOnItsWay. Thank you so much for your sweet reviews. You make me feel so happy. I don't consider myself a great writer, I just write because it's fun! And for you to say that puts a smile on my face! =)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize. **

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The next day, everything was back to normal in the Bolton household. Everyone had a day to cry their pain out and really let it all out. Ryan and Gabriella had left when the grandparents did and it was back to Tressa and Troy again. They decided against going to school today, Monday, and instead slept in and readied themselves fully after an emotionally tiring weekend. After sleeping in, they made a quick lunch of grilled cheese and tater tots. Tressa then went to her room and finished up some last minute homework while Troy called the school to make sure that the sub was running the classes alright. Later on that night, they said good night to one another before going to sleep for school the next day.

Tressa woke up as she heard her father banging on her door. She rolled her eyes and climbed out of bed, putting her robe on and opening the door a crack. "I'm up daddy." She stuck her head out of the door and kissed his cheek. "I'll be down soon."

"Alright, good morning. I'll see you down stairs soon." She closed the door and took a quick shower as she does every morning. She put on a pair of dark jeans, dark brown UGG boots and a simple white v-neck t-shirt. Instead of putting contacts in, she placed her squared framed glasses on and grabbed her bag, leaving her room.

"Good morning daddy. Smells great." She sniffed the smell of bacon in the air as she set her stuff down by the doorframe. She sat on the table and ate an apple as she waited for him to finish cooking breakfast.

"Thanks Tressa. Bacon and eggs ok for today?" He flipped the eggs before setting them on a plate in front of her. She picked up her fork and stared to dig in as Troy poured her a glass of milk. "Drink up your milk. It's good for you."

Tressa rolled her eyes. "You tell me this every morning dad. I get it." She giggled as she took a big sip of it while looking at him the entire time. "Make bones stronger- I know." She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and smiled brightly at him, showing him her pearly whites.

He chuckled. "I'm just looking out for you darling." Tressa placed her plate in the sink and finished her milk as the doorbell rang.

Her face lit up as she grabbed her bag and kissed his cheek. "Aidan and Lacey are here. I'll see you in school daddy!" She ran out of the room quickly, making Troy laugh to himself.

"Be careful and I love you." Troy shouted to her retreating figure.

"Hey guys." Tressa smiled as she walked onto her porch. "I see you two met already." Aidan grabbed her hand and laced it with his. Lacey smiled at the two before linking her arm with Tressas' free one.

"We've met. Aidan is in my biology class." Lacey responded as she took out her signature cherry lollipop. She tore off the wrapper and stuck it in her mouth. "And our teacher is a psycho."

"She really is." Aidan agreed. "Something about her son wanting to be disowned."

"I really wasn't listening." Lacey shrugged her shoulders as they continued their walk to East High. "So, you weren't in school yesterday. Are you ok?"

"Yup. My dad and I just needed a day to put ourselves back together." She leaned closer into Aidan. After arriving at the school, the three went to their lockers and dropped their jackets off. Aidan escorted the girls to their homeroom before walking to his own, after giving Tressa a kiss on the cheek and Lacey a hug. "Wanna hang out after school?" Tressa asked as they took their seat.

"Sure. We can go to your Uncle Zekes' diner."

Tressa smiled brightly. "I haven't seen him in forever. I'll tell Aidan, if you don't mind that is."

"Why would I mind?"

"I just don't want to make you feel like a third wheel."

Lacey giggled. "Don't worry about it. I'm happy for you Tress. Aidan is such a sweet guy, you deserve him." Lacey reassured her by giving her a hug.

"Thanks Lace. He's a really sweet guy. Plus, you know he's a keeper when my dad agrees." They shared a laugh as the teacher walked in. "We'll talk at lunch about the diner plan."

* * *

"Can I walk you beautiful ladies to lunch today?" Aidan asked as he walked up to the girls, who were at their lockers. Tressa and Lacey laughed as they finished collecting and dropping off their books.

"Wow, Tress, what a charmer you have." Lacey commented, winking at Aidan. She slammed her locker shut and waited for Tressa to finish up. Tressa threw her sweater in her locker before checking her reflection in the mirror quickly.

"I know. He just has a way with the ladies." Tressa blew a kiss to herself in the mirror and slammed her locker shut. She was about to pick up her bag from the ground when Aidan reached down and perched it on his own shoulder. "Thanks."

The two girls linked arms, as always, while Aidan held her hand. Tressa grabbed a table for them while Aidan and Lacey went to go buy their lunch. She took out her lunch, in a brown bag, and pulled out her turkey and cheese sandwich along with a bag of BBQ chips and a fruit by the foot. Also, she took out her snack size bottle of Sunny-D. A note was attached form her dad saying 'Have a good day princess- Dad' She giggled and stuffed it into her pocket. No matter how old she got, he would never stop writing notes like that in her lunch. To be honest, she secretly liked it. She loved how her father would still do corny stuff like that, just to make her smile.

"What is so funny?" Lacey asked as her and Aidan sat down. "Did your father write another note in your lunch?" She asked knowingly. Lacey opened up her container of chocolate milk and took a huge gulp.

"He did." She took a bite of her sandwich. "He's so corny like that."

Lacey laughed as she picked up a french fry from her tray. "Gosh, you are such a daddy's girl, it isn't even funny."

"I didn't mean to be. But, I have a good reason as to why. It's been him and I my whole life. Of course I'm going to turn out to be a daddy's girl." Tressa explained and finished by sticking her tongue out at Lacey.

"Very mature Tressa." Aidan teased before taking a spoonful of his chocolate pudding. Tressa giggled and rolled her eyes. "Anyways, Lacey mentioned something about going to your uncles' diner after school for a snack."

"Yeah, my Uncle Zeke owns it, so we'll get free food!" Tressa exclaimed. "He's a cool guy. Definitely the softy out of all of them."

Aidan scoffed. "That's what you said about your Uncle Ryan." He muttered, opening his bottle of Pepsi and taking a sip.

Lacey giggled. "Oh no, he totally intimidated Aidan on your date, huh?"

Tressa nodded her head, holding in her own laughter. "Yup. It was pretty funny."

"Was not."

"So, do you wanna join us?" Tressa asked nervously.

"Sure. Sounds like fun. I just have to call my mom after school to double check with her."

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"This place seems nice." Aidan announced as they arrived at the diner. The three walked in and Tressa immediately recognized the hostess, a 17 year old girl who was like an older sister to her.

Tressa ran over to her and took the magazine that was in her hands. "Boo!"

The girl, Natalie, was about to blow up at whoever took her magazine, but once she saw Tressa, she started screaming and hopped over the hostess stand, embracing her 'little sister.' "Tress, what are you doing here?"

Tressa giggled and pulled away from the hug. "I was just coming to eat with Lacey and my boyfriend Aidan." She pointed behind her and waved them over. "You remember Lacey and this is Aidan." She bit her lip and started blushing when she introduced Aidan. "Aidan, this is Natalie."

"It's nice to meet you." Aidan shook her hand and smiled.

Natalie looked him over, liking what she saw. "It's nice to meet you too Aidan." She winked at Tressa and gave her a thumbs up, noting that Aidan saw the whole thing.

"Is Uncle Zeke here?" Tressa asked excitedly.

"He is. He's in his office. I'll go and grab him for you." She turned to leave.

"Wait!" Natalie turned around. "Don't tell him I'm here! I want to surprise him."

"Sure thing kiddo. You guys can take your normal booth." She walked into the kitchen towards Zekes' office.

Tressa, Lacey and Aidan walked to a booth in the corner of the diner. Aidan sat on one side, on the inside, with Tressa sitting next to him while Lacey sat across from them. They opened up the menus that were in the table and scanned through everything. "Natalie, I don't have time for this. I have a lot of-" Zeke was cut off as he saw Tressa in her normal booth. He smiled brightly before walking over to the booth. "My little trouble maker." He greeted and smiled even more as he saw Tressa smile back.

"Uncle Zeke!" Tressa stood up to hug him.

"What are you doing here?" Tressa sat back down in the booth. "Who's this?" Zeke nodded his head towards Aidan, since he already knew Lacey.

Tressa smiled shyly as she blushed. "This is Aidan, my boyfriend." She turned to him. "This is my Uncle Zeke."

Zeke stared, shocked. "Does your father know?" He blurted out.

The three teenagers laughed. "Yes, of course he does. I wouldn't keep this from him." Tressa giggled some more as Zeke took a seat at the head of the table.

"So, your dad agrees with this?" He waved a finger between the couple.

"Geez, Zekie Poo, chill out." Lacey joked.

Zeke rolled his eyes. "How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that Spacey Lacey?" He grinned victoriously when she pouted.

"Jerk." She muttered and stuck her tongue out at him.

"Anyways, we came here for some food." Tressa hinted and nudged his arm with her elbow.

"Of course. It's on the house for my favorite girls." He stood up, the girls giggling, and smiled. "And Aidan as well."

After a delicious and free meal, the teenagers stood up and went to leave the diner. Tressa saw Zeke and waved him over. "Thanks for the meal Uncle Zeke." She pulled him in for a hug. "It was delicious, as always."

"Yeah. And it being free made it taste even better." Lacey grinned as she put her white sunglasses on.

Zeke laughed. "Thank you, you two. I make the best for you." He gave Lacey a hug as well before shaking Aidans' hand. "It was nice to meet you. Come back again."

"You as well sir. And I will certainly tell my family about this place. The food was perfect."

Zeke turned to Tressa and pointed to Aidan. "I like this kid."

"Well, we haven't seen you in a while. You should come around sometime." Tressa stated. "My dad could use another guy to talk to." She giggled as did Zeke.

"I'll stop by tomorrow if I have time. Tell the old man I said hi."

"Old man? You're the same age as him." Lacey said as if it was obvious.

"You need to get new friends Tress." He teased before walking them to the door. "Have a good night guys."

"You too. Adios!" Lacey blew a kiss at him to which he just laughed to. "Your uncle is so cute!" She exclaimed after they were a block away.

"Ew, Lace? That's disgusting." Tressa pretended to gag as her and Aidan clasped hands again. "He's my uncle."

"So? He's not mine so it's ok!" Lacey shrugged her shoulders and took out a lollipop.

"Are you always sucking on a lollipop?" Aidan asked curiously.

Tressa nodded her head. "She is. She's been eating those since I can remember." She giggled as Lacey rolled her eyes.

"I like lollipops." She crumpled up the wrapper from it and threw it at him. "So, anyways, I'll see you tomorrow, same time." She hugged the couple before running onto her porch, into her house.

Tressa and Aidan laughed as they continued to her house. "So, how was my Uncle Zeke? Scary like my other uncle?" She teased, leaning into him as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"Ha ha, very funny." He said sarcastically. Tressa giggled as he continued. "He's cool. Not as bad as your Uncle Ryan was at first."

"My family will warm up to you, don't worry." She kissed his cheek, walking up onto her front porch. "Do you want to come in for a little while?"

"I would love to but I can't; I have a lot of homework to do and my Aunt is visiting from New York." He explained. "Maybe next time." He smiled and leaned in, giving her a quick kiss on her lips. "Good night Tressa."

Tressa smiled as she bit her bottom lip. "Good night Aidan." She leaned her back against the door as she watched him walk down the street. Once he was out of her sight, she turned around and opened the door, walking inside as she dropped her stuff on the ground. "I'm home!" She screamed into the quiet house.

"I'm in the kitchen." Tressa heard Troy yell back. She kicked her shoes off and made her way there. "Hey daddy." She smiled as she entered the room.

Troy was sitting at the island counter, shuffling through the mail. "Hey princess. Did you have a good day?"

"I did. Uncle Zeke says hi."

"How's he doing?" Troy looked up form the mail and focused his attention on her.

"He's good. He said he'll try and come down to see you tomorrow." She sat down on the seat next to him. "How was your day?"

Troy smiled before standing up and opened the fridge. "It was alright. I'm trying to get the team in shape for the homecoming game next month." She heard him pushing stuff around before standing up and closing the fridge, a bag of marinating chicken in his hand.

Tressa groaned, dropping her head onto the counter. "You're not seriously trying to cook chicken without burning it, are you?" She turned her head so the side of it was on the table while looking at him.

"Ha ha." He rolled his eyes. "Uncle Zeke gave me a new recipe and I decided to try it out."

"Are the smoke detectors working?"

"Aren't you just full of jokes today?"

Tressa giggled, standing up to stand beside him. "Can I help?"

"Sure. Here are the instructions." He handed her a piece of paper. "So, what do we do first?" He asked as the pair rolled their sleeves up to their elbows.

"Well, for starters, we wash our hands." She smiled as they quickly did so. She picked up the paper again. "One: Take the chicken out of the bag and put it into the pan." She recited.

Troy mock saluted. "Ay, ay captain." He grabbed one of the chicken legs and pulled it out of the bag with two hands. He dropped it onto the cooking sheet and continued with the four pieces.

"Dad, I know you're not a math genius, but come on. There are two of us, why four pieces of chicken?"

"I figured we could have the other two for left overs later on during the week." He smiled proudly.

Tressa laughed at her fathers' proud smile. "Sounds great. Anyways, next, turn the oven onto 400 degrees and place the tray of chicken into the oven." She set the paper down and turned on the oven to the right temperature. Troy slid the baking sheet in the oven and closed it. "Now, we have to wait about an hour then flip them over, pouring some of the juice over them."

"Perfect. I have to start the potatoes. Want to make the salad while I do that?" Tressa nodded her head.

She grabbed a cucumber, a green pepper, some lettuce; a tomato and a carrot from the fridge while Troy grabbed two potatoes. He washed them off and wrapped them in tinfoil. Tressa peeled and cut the vegetables before pouring the pieces into a bigger bowl, grabbing the Italian dressing that Troy handed her. "Thank you." She poured some of it over the salad and mixed it all together. Troy placed the potatoes in the oven next to the tray of chicken.

"Now we wait." Troy stated.

"Sounds easy enough. I'm going to do start my homework. Call me down in an hour." She gave him a kiss on the cheek before leaving to her room. Tressa watched her clock, knowing how her father could be forgetful sometimes. She finished her homework within a half hour so she decided to go downstairs to see what he was up to. Troy was just turning on their Wii when she walked into the room.

Troy turned to her and smiled. "Wanna get your butt kicked in Mario Cart?"

She put a hand on her stomach and leaned her head back, letting out a sarcastic laugh. "In your dreams, old man." She grabbed the other Wii remote that he was holding out to her.

"Old man? Ouch." He pouted as he turned on the game system.

"Uncle Zeke said it first." She shrugged her shoulders innocently.

The two picked their characters and cars along with the place they were going to race at. Tressa won the first round and Troy won the following two. Well, he won the second time by cheating, shoving Tressa just as they were both neck in neck near the finish line. But Tressa came back and killed him another two times just as the buzzer went off for their food. They set their controllers down and quickly flipped the chicken and taking the potatoes out before returning to their game.

* * *

"Dinner was great dad." Tressa said as she dumped her plate into the kitchen sink.

Troy smiled as he did that same with his plate. "Thank you Tress."

"Do you need some help with the dishes?" Tressa asked from the dining room as she cleared off the table. She returned to the kitchen, arms full of the salad bowl and dressing.

"You go take a shower or something. I can take it form here." He helped her out by taking the bowl from her. "Thanks for your help earlier though."

"Anytime. I'm going to call Lacey. If you need anything just shout."

"Thanks baby girl." Troy placed a kiss on her forehead.

"No problem. Love you."

"I love you too princess."

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**So…it was kind of short. Thank you again for all of the reviews. I love reading what you guys think of this. I know this was a pointless chapter. I wanted it to be sweet after the sad chapters before this. Also, no flashback in this one. I couldn't really think of one to put in this chapter. Plus, there were a few in the last chapters. **

**Please review! **


	11. Chapter 11

**Aww…thanks guys! Lovin' the reviews!**

**On a side note, please check out 'Live Every Moment' if you haven't! I feel like people must not like it because the number of reviews went down. **

**Please keep an open mind on this chapter; it's different but I have a plan. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize.**

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The following night, Wednesday, Troy went out to meet up for a 'guys night' and left Tressa home alone. He was hesitant on doing so but decided that she was old enough to stay home by herself. Tressa giggled and practically shoved him out of the house. He left her a list of everyone's phone numbers and emergency numbers, making her laugh harder. She eventually got him out of the house. Right now, Tressa was curled up on the couch, watching The Strangers on TV. She held a pillow in her hand, hiding her face behind it when she was scared. Just when it was a scary part on TV, she heard a noise in the front yard.

Tressa paused the movie and turned around to the window behind the couch. She swallowed fearfully and opened the curtain, screaming when she saw an outline of someone on the front lawn. The person walked towards the window and smashed it in. Tressa screamed again and fell off the couch, running to the kitchen. The person, wearing all black, climbed through the broken window and followed after her. Tressa grabbed the emergency numbers from the fridge and shoved them in her pocket. The person entered the kitchen as Tressa tried to look for something to protect herself with. As the person came closer, Tressa ran around the table, knocking a chair down behind her before running towards the front door. She heard the guy kick the chair out of the way and cried even more.

Tressa frantically tried to unlock the door but couldn't get it open out of fear. She cried out before turning around, seeing the person walk towards her. She dropped her hands and tried to run up the stairs only to have him grab her ankle, making her fall. She kicked and wailed her feet as he pulled her closer. "Let go." She screamed, crying by this time. "Please." She pulled back her free foot and kicked it forward, successfully kicking him in the nose.

The man grunted and let go of her ankle, bringing his hands to cradle his now broken nose. Tressa quickly found her footing and stood up, running up the stairs and into her fathers' room since it was the closest. She slammed the door shut and locked it. Running her fingers through her hair, she put her head in her hands as she heard the man banging on the door. "No." She whimpered as she tried to think of something to do. Tressa shakily took her phone out of her pocket and dialed the first number that came to mind. As the phone rang, the man continued to bang the door, making Tressa jump each time. _"Hey Tress."_

"Daddy. Help me." She whimpered into the phone, screaming as she saw as she the wood of the door splinter open. She saw the person through the hole using a fire extinguisher to break the door open. She backed up until she hit a wall, jumping.

"_Tressa? What's wrong?" _Troy asked as he heard her scream.

"Someone's in the house. Help me." She screamed again, the man stepping into the room from the hole he broke into the door. The person took out a knife which made Tressas' eyes widen with fear. She opened her mouth to say something but couldn't form any words. The guy swung the knife at her and she screamed as she quickly ducked, dropping the phone in the process. Tressa heard her father screaming her name through the phone just as the person stepped on it, breaking it into pieces. He took another swing at her and she jumped out of the way of it and ran to the connecting bathroom. She closed and locked the door again. "Go away." She yelled brokenly before sobbing into her hands, sliding down the wall and onto the floor. Instead of hearing the man banging on the door, she heard silence. She lifted her head up and looked towards the door suspiciously, standing up. She cautiously walked to the door and put her ear against it, hearing no sounds from the other side. She closed her eyes as she flicked the lock open, carefully opening the door as well. Tressa slowly stuck her head out the door and saw nobody in the bedroom.

Tressa took a cautious step out of the bathroom and towards the broken door. She fearfully continued to venture out of the room, avoiding the pile of wood pieces on the floor. She glanced down the hallway, quietly walking towards the stairs. She was about to run down the stairs when the man suddenly lunged at her, knocking both of them to the floor, him on top of her. Tressa heard the pictures on the wall fall and break as she flailed her arms around and kicked her feet in an attempt to fight him off. "Please." She sobbed, loosing energy as she fought so hard. "Don't do this." She pleaded. She continued to fight hard but he was too strong for her. He slapped her hard on her cheek, making her cry out in pain, closing her eyes. He hit her once more before the front door burst open, two officers running into the house with their guns ready to fire. The officers saw the two at the top of the stairs and quickly ran up their, pulling the guy off of her.

Tressa rolled away until she hit the wall. She leaned her back against the wall as she brought her knees up to her chest, openly sobbing. One of the officers comforted her as the other one arrested the man. He dragged the man down the stairs, as the man glared at Tressa. She shuddered and buried her head in her hands, ignoring as the officer rubbed her back. "There's an ambulance outside as well. I think you should get checked out." He whispered to her.

Tressa looked up at him. "Where's my dad?"

"He's on his way." The officer stood up and held out a hand to her. "Come on. We'll get your cheek checked out and your dad will be here soon." Tressa nodded her head and grabbed his hand, allowing him to pull her down the stairs and outside. He walked her over to the ambulance and helped her climb in. A paramedic sat her down and wrapped a blanket around her. She pulled it tightly around her as he wiped her bleeding cheek.

Just as he finished cleaning it up and placing a white bandage over it, Troy jumped out of his car and ran up to the house, looking for Tressa. She saw him and jumped off of the ambulance. "Daddy." She called out as she launched herself into his arms. He wrapped his arms around her as well, holding her to him. She cried into his shoulder as she clutched onto him. "Don't leave daddy." She sobbed as he kissed the top of her head over and over again.

"I won't baby girl. I won't." He whispered as he stroked her hair reassuringly, leaning his head on top of hers and closing his eyes.

Chad, Zeke and Jason ran over from their cars and each rubbed her back. After they got the phone call from Tressa, they called the police and rushed to get to the house. They called up Taylor and Kelsi and told them what was up. A few minutes later, the two showed up, scared for their niece. They wanted to hug her but knew that Tressa needed her father more than them. A little while later, after everything was settled with the police, the family walked inside the house, Tressa still clutching onto Troy.

Chad, Zeke and Jason found some pool covering paper to cover the broken window in the kitchen. They duct taped it up until they could call someone in the morning to come and fix it. Taylor and Kelsi went to the kitchen and picked up the fallen chair before starting a pot of tea on the stove for Tressa. Troy and Tressa went into the living room and took a seat on the couch, after the men cleaned off the broken glass from it, Troy still trying to comfort a shaking Tressa. The ladies handed Tressa a cup of tea and she took it, tea spilling out over the top since her hands were shaking badly. Troy helped her steady it and take a sip before he set it on the table for her.

"Are you ok Tressa?" Kelsi asked carefully. Her voice seemed to startle the young girl because Tressa jumped when she started talking. Tressa, who couldn't find her voice, just shook her head, her face showing no emotion.

"How can she be ok after what just happened?" Troy asked quietly as he gazed down at his little girl who was literally shaking in his arms. He didn't mean for that to come out harsh but he couldn't help it. Kelsi understood that and didn't take any offense to it. "I should've never gone out tonight." He muttered to himself. Troy tucked his daughters' head under his chin and held her close to him.

"It's not your fault Troy." Chad said sternly. He knew his best friend was going to say that. "Don't blame yourself."

"He's right." Tressa muttered, squeezing his hand. That's the person he needed to say it to fully believe it wasn't his fault. The TV was still paused on The Strangers from before and Tressa cringed, hiding her face in Troys' shoulder. "Change the channel." She cried out, tears falling from her eyes again.

Jason quickly grabbed the remote and turned the television off. Everyone watched Tressa break down again, their own hearts breaking at the sight. Troy pulled her onto his lap and held her, trying to soothe her. Chad got an idea and ran up the stairs and into her room. He grabbed something off of her bed before running back down the stairs. He walked over to the father/daughter and handed Tressa her stuffed monkey. She looked up at him and took the monkey, holding it close to her chest.

"Do you guys want to stay here tonight?" Troy asked, talking to his friends as he continued rubbing Tressas' back. "It doesn't matter to me. I think it'll make Tressa feel much better." He tried to get a reaction out of her but got nothing.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive." Troy nodded his head while placing a kiss on Tressas' head. "Chad and Taylor, you can stay in the guest room, Jason and Kelsi can stay in Tressas' room while she stays with me, and Zeke can stay on the couch if that's ok?" He asked and they all nodded.

"The couch is fine." Zeke nodded his head.

"Is that ok Tressa?" Troy asked his daughter. She just looked up at him and nodded her head. "Let's get to bed now."

Minutes later, everyone went to their designated rooms while Troy helped a still frightened Tressa to his room. The officers helped pick up the mess so they didn't have to worry about it later. Once they were up the stairs, Tressa winced when she saw the hallway where she was attacked. Troy noticed and rubbed her shoulders soothingly. "It's ok Tressa. I'm here now and I'm not going to let anything happen to you." Tressa closed her eyes and nodded her head as he steered her to his room where she winced again. Troy managed to get Tressa to lie down on the bed while he grabbed his pajamas. "I'm going to the bathroom to change. I'll be right back." He kneeled down on the ground next to the bed and brushed some hair out of her face. He placed a kiss on her forehead and walked to the bathroom.

Tressa watched him close the door and sighed. She glanced around the room, the events of the night coming back to her full force. Biting her lip, she closed her eyes and took deep breaths as she waited for him. After a few minutes, Troy stepped out from the bathroom, glancing at Tressa immediately. He noticed that she was a little on the pale side. After throwing his clothes in the hamper, he laid down next to Tressa and turned the light off, making Tressa whimper slightly. He immediately pulled her into his arms where she snuggled into him. "I love you Tressa."

Tressa nodded her head as she closed her eyes. Troy sighed and rubbed her back. This is the last thing that his little girl needed. He should've been home. He should've been there to protect her. He let her down and himself down. Ten minutes later, Troy heard Tressas' even breaths and realized that she was sleeping. She was still holding onto him tightly and he didn't mind.

Troy closed his eyes and tried to get some sleep but he seemed to have a restless night. It didn't help when Tressa woke up screaming, panting slightly, before starting to cry. He hugged her close to him as she cried out the fear from her nightmare. "It's ok Tressa. It was just a nightmare." He whispered. Tressa shook her head as she buried it into his shoulder. "You're safe now baby girl. I'm not going to let anyone hurt you again."

Tressa, once she realized it was a nightmare, controlled her crying and managed to quiet it down to a few whimpers. "You're not going to leave right?" She asked quietly.

"Never Tressa." He promised, placing a kiss on her forehead. "Everything's going to be ok."

* * *

The next morning, Thursday, Chad woke up early due to the doorbell ringing. Knowing that Troy and Tressa both weren't going to go to school, he quickly got up and ran down the stairs, pulling the door open. Lacey and Aidan both looked up at him and smiled. Chad returned it as he finished tying his robe shut. "Hi Lacey." He looked over to Aidan. "And stranger."

Lacey giggled and rolled her eyes. "This is Aidan, Tressas' boyfriend, Chad."

Chads' lips formed into a thin line as he looked over Aidan. "Boyfriend, eh?" He raised an eyebrow at him. He shook his head; there was a bigger issue at stake here. "Tressa isn't going to school today."

"What? Why? Is she ok?" Aidan frantically asked. Lacey nodded her head in agreement with his questions before looking at him, waiting for a response form him.

Chad sighed, knowing he had to tell them sooner or later. "Someone broke into the house last night when Troy went out for a guy's night. She's fine, just shaken up. I don't think you'll be seeing her at school until next week if that." He explained.

The two teenagers looked at him, shocked. "Oh my gosh." Lacey whispered to herself, bringing a hand up to her mouth and covering it. "Are you sure she's ok?"

Chad nodded his head. "Again, she's just shaken up."

"Can we see her?" Aidan asked, scared for his girlfriend.

"She's sleeping right now. Check back after school, she should be up by then."

Aidan and Lacey nodded their heads. "Ok. Can you tell her we'll see her then?"

"I will. Don't worry guys." Chad added after seeing the looks on their face. "Everything will be ok." They quickly nodded their heads before walking towards the school. Chad closed and locked the door again before walking back up the stairs and into the guestroom. Taylor was still sleeping peacefully and he glanced at Zeke when he was down stairs and noticed he was sleeping as well. He walked across the hall and opened the door to Troys' room and peeked in, just to check on them. They were still sleeping, surprising Chad. _How can someone who was just attacked the night before sleep? Especially someone who is only 14 years old? _He shook his head and left the room, returning to his own.

* * *

"Tressa?" Troy shook her shoulder gently, trying to wake her up. He smiled softly at her before shaking her shoulder again. He saw her eyes flutter open and pushed the hair out of her face. "Morning baby girl. I'm going to go down stairs and make breakfast ok?" He asked gently, watching her face contort into fear.

"Please don't leave me." She cried out as she clutched onto his arm tightly.

The sight of his little girl so scared made Troys' heart break. He pulled her onto his lap and held onto her. "I'm just going to make breakfast."

"Please daddy, don't go. I'm scared." She let out a sob on the last word.

"Sh, Tressa. There's nothing to be scared of. Nobody is going to hurt you." He soothed, running a hand up and down her back. "I'm here now."

Tressa hiccupped as she looked up at him. "I'm going down with you."

Troy nodded his head, knowing that she wouldn't stay anywhere by herself. They climbed out of the bed and Tressa immediately wrapped an arm around his arm. The pair left the room and climbed down the stairs, making their way towards the kitchen. Troy helped her sit down on a stool, letting his gaze linger on her worriedly for a few seconds before starting breakfast. He noticed that she was incredibly pale and scared of her own house. He silently cursed the guy who did this to her. As he made bacon and eggs, he kept sneaking glances at Tressa to make sure she was alright.

Tressa hugged herself and rubbed her arms to keep warm. She was scared and it probably showed. Suddenly, the events of last night flashed in front of her eyes. She closed her eyes and buried her head in her hands, panting. Troy noticed and dropped everything he was doing to embrace her. She jumped when he touched her and pushed him away, still in her flashback. "Stay away from me." She yelled, keeping her head in her hands. Troy, shocked that he was pushed away, just stared at her frightfully. He didn't know what to do.

Everyone ran into the room minutes later to see a concerned Troy standing by a hysterical Tressa. She was crying and mumbling 'No' repeatedly, rocking back and forth in her chair. Troy snapped out of his fear and ran over to her, ignoring her pleas of protest. "Tressa, it's me, your father." He said as she shook violently in his arms. She screamed again and tried to push him away, thinking he was the guy from the night before. Troy just kept a grip on her and kept whispering that it was him.

"I think she's having a panic attack." Taylor whispered to everyone.

Five minutes later, Tressa calmed down and snapped out of her nightmare, crying rivers. Troy cried with her, scared about what was happening to her. Kelsi took a clean rag and wet it in warm water planning on placing it on Tressas' head when she calmed down fully. Tressa closed her eyes as she held on for dear life. Troy led her to the living room and sat the two of them on the couch. Tressa took another few deeps breaths, closing her eyes. She allowed Kelsi to hold the rag onto her head as she laid down, Troy kneeling on the floor beside her stroking her hair soothingly. After a few minutes, she fell asleep. "What the hell just happened?" Troy asked the group, scared.

"Troy, I think she had a panic attack." Taylor answered softly. "I think you should take her to see a therapist."

"Therapist?" Troy asked incredulously. "You really think so?" He looked down on his little girl and sighed.

"I do. Troy, maybe you should take her to see the doctor. She could end up having Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from this, judging by the panic attack she just had." Taylor added.

"You're right. I should call them today." He said distractingly. "Thanks for being here guys."

"Anytime Troy." Kelsi patted his arm supportively.

"You stay here with Tressa; we'll fix breakfast together for you." Jason said as everyone stood up, leaving the room. Troy glanced down at Tressa and closed his eyes, wondering what he was going to do. He placed a kiss on her forehead lovingly. "Everything will be ok, Tressa. I promise."

* * *

**Ok, well, again, this idea may seem like it came out of left field for you guys but don't worry- I have a plan. I'm sorry if it wasn't your cup of tea; it's a little far fetched but please keep an open mind to it! Please review! **


	12. Chapter 12

**Aww…thanks guys for the incredible reviews! I know it was a different idea for last chapter but it's all going to connect by the end of the story! Also, on a side note, I posted a new story called 'Find Yourself in You.' Please check it out! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize. **

* * *

"A therapist?" Tressa asked quietly. She and Troy were seated in the living room. Everyone had just left and Troy jumped on the opportunity to give Tressa his opinion about a therapist. Tressa was cuddled up near the arm of the couch with a blanket secured around her while Troy was sitting next to her, rubbing her back soothingly. "Really?"

Troy nodded his head. "I think it'll be a good idea Tressa. What happened in the kitchen earlier scared me. And it scared you. I don't want to wait for this to get worse, if it does. I just want you to be ok." His voice broke near the end of his sentence. "You're my little girl."

Tressa played with her fingers nervously as she thought about the idea for a minute. "I just don't want to go talk to some stranger about it. How is talking about it going to make it any better?" She stared up at him, the look on her face breaking Troys' heart.

"They can help you. You may not believe that now but once you go there, you'll see." He whispered as Tressa shuffled closer to him, wrapping an arm around his torso. He picked her up and settled her on his lap before leaning his head atop of hers.

"I don't know." She sighed.

"Tress, are you scared about going to one?" Troy asked his daughter.

Tressa took a deep breathe. "What if they ask me about mom?"

Troy nodded his head, finally realizing her reason for hesitation. "Is that what you're worried about?" He felt Tressa nod her head. "You don't have to talk about her Tress. You'd be going to the therapist to talk about what happened last night. Plus, it wouldn't hurt to talk to someone about your mother." He added hesitantly, not knowing how she was going to react to that.

"If I wanted to talk to someone about my mother I would have years ago. "She said hotly, glaring. She took a deep breath to calm herself down.

Troy closed his eyes, knowing how painful it was to talk to someone about her. "Tress, I went to a therapist after your mother died." He stated and Tressa immediately looked up at him curiously. "I was a new father to a beautiful baby girl with a recently deceased wife, I needed someone to vent to." He added. "It wasn't easy to raise you all by myself. There were a lot of struggles along the way, struggles that I needed to talk to a therapist about."

"Didn't you have grandma and grandpa to talk to? Plus all of your friends?" She asked, clearly confused. She shuffled off of his lap and sat next to him, being able to see him better instead of craning her neck.

"Sometimes it's easier to talk to someone who doesn't know you." He said with a shrug of his shoulders. "Everyone kept telling me that 'it'll be alright' and sometimes I didn't believe that. A therapist will talk you through a situation that your family would just leave you be on because they think it'll hurt you if they bring it up. Our family kept quiet about the death of your mother because they thought it would hurt me even more when in reality I just needed to tell someone. A therapist doesn't know you and is able to ask the right questions to help you move on from a traumatic experience. My therapist really helped me Tress, and I know they can help you too." He smiled softly at his daughter as he saw her let the information sink in. "You just have to be willing to give them a chance."

"Wow." She stated in awe and looked back up at her father. "I didn't know you went to one. But now that I think about it, it makes sense. Your therapist really helped?" She asked incredulously.

Troy chuckled as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "She really did help me. At first, I went to her twice a week and talked about your mother and I's relationship as well as you growing up. I would tell her how my week went and how I was handling raising you. Everything. She really helped me realize that I could still live life without Sharpay, which is still difficult to his very day, and be a great father to my beautiful baby girl." He smiled softly at her and placed a kiss on her forehead.

"Well, I think you're doing an amazing job." Tressa smiled, leaning her head on his shoulder.

"Thank you Tressa. It's nice to hear that sometimes."

The two remained silent for a few minutes. "So, do you still go to your therapist?" Tressa asked curiously.

"Not as much as I used to. Now, I just call in whenever I need to. Mainly on your mothers' birthday or our anniversary. Days that have an emotional impact on me." He answered before the doorbell rang. The two glanced at each other before Troy stood up to answer the door. Tressa stayed behind fearfully, clutching onto the blanket. Troy came back seconds later with Aidan and Lacey in tow. They ran over to her and sat down next to her on the couch while Troy motioned that he was going to the kitchen. Tressa nodded her head in appreciation before turning to her friend and boyfriend.

"Oh my gosh, Chad told us what happened this morning. How are you?" Lacey asked frantically and pulled Tressa in for a bone crushing hug. Tressa giggled and hugged her back, the two pulling away after a minute.

"I'm ok." She said weakly and looked at Aidan. He smiled at her and gave her a hug as well, not as tight as Laceys' was. When he pulled away, he planted a kiss on her cheek gently. "You guys didn't have to come over." She smiled slightly at them.

"Yes we did." Aidan immediately responded and Lacey nodded her head in agreement.

Tressa smiled gently at the two. "Thank you. It means a lot that you guys would come and check up on me."

"Aw, Tress, you know that you're like the sister I've never had." Lacey hugged her friend again and the two giggled. "Seriously, we're here for you if you ever want to talk about it." Lacey waved a finger between her and Aidan.

Aidan grabbed her hand reassuringly. "Exactly. We're only a phone call away."

The three teenagers put on a movie, a comedy, with Troy popping in to check on Tressa every ten minutes to make sure she was alright. She smiled at him each time and he nodded his head. The friends left as soon as the movie ended to get home for dinner but not before promising to visit the next day. Once Tressa walked them out, she walked into the kitchen to stay close to her father. "What's for dinner?"

Troy turned around after grabbing bottled water from the fridge and shrugged his shoulders. "I was thinking about ordering in. What are you in the mood for?"

Tressa pulled out the entire take out menus from one of the drawers and looked through them quickly. "I'm feeling Chinese food." She smiled as she handed him the menu for a Chinese restaurant.

Troy took it from her with a smile. "You want the usual?"

* * *

"Daddy, can I stay with you again tonight?" Tressa asked, walking into her fathers' room. He was already dressed for bed and watching Family Guy on the TV in his room. He looked away from the TV and nodded his head. "Of course." He knew his little girl was still just as terrified as she was last night so he couldn't deny her his comfort.

Tressa smiled and climbed onto the bed, lying down next to her father who had turned back to the TV to finish watching his show. She linked her arm through one of his and started watching the TV as well. "So, I've been thinking all day and I've decided that it's best to go see a therapist, but not about mom. I'm not comfortable to talk to a stranger about her." Tressa confessed, still looking at the TV instead of her father.

Troy turned his attention away form the TV and down on his daughter. "Are you sure baby girl? You don't have to if you don't want to. I was just giving you my opinion earlier."

"I know but I want to. If I don't talk to a professional about it, it could potentially get worse. I just want to try and forget about last night and going to a therapist would be the first step in the right direction." She explained her reasoning.

Troy placed a kiss on the top of her head. "I'm so proud of you Tressa. I think you're doing the right thing as well. I'll call my therapist tomorrow and see if she can schedule sometime this week." He smiled down at her proudly. "Everything will be ok. You'll be surprised just how much this'll work."

"I trust you daddy." He turned the TV and the lights off. "Wait, daddy, you said you go on her birthday. I don't remember you ever leaving me home alone or with anyone."

Troy chuckled. "That's because I went while you were at school."

"Were you ashamed of going?" She asked curiously.

"Of course not. I just didn't want you to know. I am and always have to be the strong one for you because I'm your only parent. I couldn't let you find out I was going to talk to someone because I couldn't deal with it on my own." He stated softly.

"I love you daddy." Tressa kissed his cheek before laying her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes.

"I love you too princess."

"_Troy, can you please stop pacing? You're making me sick to my stomach." _

_22 year old Troy Bolton turned to look at his best friend, nervousness plastered across his normal joyful face. "Stop pacing?" He asked incredulously. "Stop pacing? I'm going to ask the woman of my dreams to marry me tonight and you're telling me to stop pacing?" He ran a hand through his sandy brown hair, a habit of clear nervousness. He gave his best friend another look before turning around and pacing the floor again. _

_Chad rolled his eyes and tossed his basketball in the air again. "Dude, she's going to say yes so why don't you stop freaking out." _

"_I know she's going to say yes, but it's still nerve wracking. What if I trip and the ring gets lost or something?" Suddenly Troy tensed up and looked at Chad, eyes wide with fear. "Oh god, where's the ring." He harshly patted his thighs to feel if the box was in his pockets. Once he didn't feel it, he frantically started to tear apart the room trying to find it. _

"_Troy, it's in your jacket." Chad rolled his eyes again. _

_Troy stopped what he was doing and ran over to his jacket, sighing with relief when he pulled out the velvet, black box from the inside pocket. Troy opened it up and stared at the ring, smiling softly. "Chad, I need your advice right now, seriously." Chad put the basketball down and walked over to his best friend when he heard the worry and concern in Troys' voice. _

"_What's up man?" He asked as he placed a hand on Troys' shoulder supportively._

_Troy turned the box slightly in his hand so Chad could have another look at the beautiful, simple diamond engagement ring sitting in the box. "Seriously, do you think it's alright? Will she like it?" Troy asked, looking at his best friend worriedly._

_Chad smiled gently at him. "Troy, she's going to love it. Yeah, she loves material things and loves expensive, stand-out, flashy items, but you and I both know that when it comes to spending the rest of her life with you, she's not going to care about what the ring looks like. She's going to say yes and she's going to love the ring." Chad patted his shoulder. _

_Troy smiled at his best friend. "Thanks Chad. I needed to hear that." He carefully closed the box and placed it back in the jacket pocket. "Do you think we're moving too fast? I mean, Sharpay and I are only 22 years old." He asked as he sat down on the edge of the bed. _

_Chad followed suit. "Maybe you're a little young but it doesn't matter. What you guys have is something special. You guys are truly in love with each other and I know that you guys aren't moving fast at all. Stop fretting." _

_Troy chuckled and held out his hand for Chad to shake, which he did. "Thanks again. I'm kind of nervous." He laughed nervously. He glanced at his watch and stood up. "Alright man, let's go. I have a girl to propose to." _

_Troy and Chad arrived at the restaurant where Jack and Lucille Bolton were celebrating their twentieth wedding anniversary. Sharpay had ridden with her parents, Vance and Lyndsey, since she and Troy had just gotten back from a vacation in Maui. Troy quickly spotted Sharpay and ditched Chad who shrugged his shoulders before finding Taylor. Troy walked up behind Sharpay, who was in a conversation with Gabriella and Kelsi, and covered her eyes with his hands. "Guess who?" _

_Sharpay giggled and turned around to face him, kissing him softly. "My adorable boyfriend who I love oh so much." She smiled warmly at him. Troy nervously smiled back when he heard the word boyfriend. _

"_Not for long." He thought but apparently said it out loud when Sharpay asked him what he said. "Oh nothing." He scratched the back of his neck. _

_Sharpay looked at him for a minute before letting his weird behavior slide. "If you say so sweetie." She patted his cheek just before she left him to go talk to Gabriella and Ryan. Troy blew out a sigh of relief as he watched her walk away, appreciating her backside for a minute. He shook his head and walked over to where his parents were._

"_Hey mom, dad." He kissed Lucilles' cheek before hugging her. He pulled away and hugged his dad as well. "Happy anniversary." _

"_Thanks baby." Lucille brushed his bangs out of his face. _

"_So, are you ready for tonight son?" Jack asked his son, placing a hand on Troys' shoulder. _

"_Ready for what?" Lucille asked her two boys._

_Troy nodded his head nervously. "I think so." _

"_Don't worry, everything will be fine." _

"_What will be fine?" Lucille asked louder this time. The father and son continued to talk about what was going down that evening while Lucille was left in the dust about it. She sighed and left them alone, walking over to Vance and Lyndsey to have a conversation she would be included in on. _

_Later on that night, after dinner, Troy and Sharpay were on the dance floor dancing to a slow song. A lot of the other couples were dancing as well and some people were sitting down, drinking a glass of champagne. "This is nice." Sharpay commented, leaning her forehead against Troys' forehead. _

_Troy smiled and placed a chaste kiss on her lips. "It is nice." _

"_Your parents seem really happy Troy, especially after twenty years of marriage." The couple turned their heads to glance at Troys' parents who were dancing a few feet away from them, smiling and kissing each other softly. Troy cringed and turned his head to face his girlfriend. "That's nasty." He muttered to himself. _

_Sharpay giggled and placed her head back on his shoulder. "Oh stop it Troy. You should be happy that they're still together and happy. Not many people can say that they survived twenty years of marriage." She whispered, smiling._

"_I know Pay." He kissed her hair. His father nodded at him subtly and Troy knew that it was time. Troy pulled back form Sharpay gently. "I have something to say Pay. Just give me a minute." He smiled at her before walking onto the stage, grabbing the microphone from the DJ who turned the music off. Troy walked to the center of the stage and brought the microphone up to his mouth. "Can I just steal the spotlight for a few minutes?" He asked the group who clapped for him. "First of all, congratulations to my parents for making it to twenty years. I'm happy for you two. I love you." He smiled at his parents, his mothers' eyes tearing up. _

"_Right now, I'd like to say something to my gorgeous girlfriend, Sharpay." She looked at him with confusion while he smiled softly. "Sharpay Evans you are my angel." He said gently. "I remember the day I met you, when we were only five years old in kindergarten. You were wearing a bright pink summer dress and your brown hair at the time was in two ponytails. You and Ryan were playing on the money bars together and I was on the basketball courts with Chad. I remember trying to talk to you but you blew me off, flipping your perfect hair over your shoulders and strutting away from me." The crowd laughed, as did Sharpay who was crying silently, trying to figure out why and how he remembered that. _

"_I bet you're wondering why I told that story." Sharpay nodded her head along with everyone else. "Well, that was the day I first noticed you and was first intrigued by you, even if I was only five years old. Throughout the years, the two of us drifted apart and became enemies, if you will." He coughed nervously before continuing. "You were involved in your drama and I was into basketball, two opposites. But during our junior year, after Gabriella came and changed the status quo, you and I became a lot closer, starting to date after a month a half of talking. You always made me a happy man Sharpay; you always know what to say and when to say it to make me feel complete. Every night, you tell me you love me and my heart soars. You're my better half Sharpay and you bring the best out of me. What I am trying to get at is," He paused to reach into his pocket and got down on one knee, everyone in the room gasping. Troy looked up at Sharpay nervously, Sharpay covering a hand with her mouth, crying even more now. "Pay, Sharpay Evans, will you make me the happiest man to ever live on this planet, and marry me?" _

_Sharpay just stared at him, her vocal chords deciding not to work. Troy gulped nervously as he stared her down, hoping she would say the one word he wanted to hear. Everyone in the crowd was completely silent, which was weird considering Chad was in the room. Sharpay suddenly ran over to Troy on stage and hugged him to death, both of them landing on the floor of the stage, Sharpay lying on top of Troy. She started kissing his face furiously. "Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!" She mumbled between each kiss, which was projected since the microphone was still in his hand. Everyone started cheering and applauding for them while Sharpay placed one last kiss on lips sweetly. She pulled away and looked into his eyes. "Yes."_

_Troy smiled brightly and sat up, helping her stand up as well before hugging her tightly to his body. "You said yes." He whispered shockingly to himself. Sharpay giggled and pulled away from him. He noticed her tear stained cheek and gently wiped her cheeks, staring into her eyes lovingly. "Thank you." He realized that the box with the ring in it was lying on the floor from when Sharpay lunged at him. He picked up the box and took the ring out of it. She smiled giddily as she held her left hand out, waiting for him to place the ring on. He smiled as well and gently guided the ring onto her left hand ring finger. Sharpay started jumping up and down and placed another kiss on his lips before running off the stage and towards her mother and Lucille to show off the ring._

Troy shook his head as came out of his reverie. He turned his head and looked over his shoulder at Tressa who was still sleeping. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, thinking about Sharpay again. All the talk yesterday about her made the memories come flooding back. He placed his head in his hands and sighed. The memory of his proposal made him chuckle to himself, remembering when Sharpay lunged at him and kissed more times than he could count. He lifted his head and looked at the picture of Sharpay on his night stand, tracing a finger down her face. He bit his lip and stared at it for a few seconds. "Love you Pay."

* * *

**I know I've said this before but this was by far my favorite chapter! Lol I really felt that this chapter turned out well. I hope you feel the same way- tell me through a review! ;) **


	13. Chapter 13

**Thank you so much!! You guys are incredible! Sorry about the long wait on this, at least it was long for me! I have a lot of stuff going on at the moment so I'm sorry. **

**WARNING: This chapter has some sad parts to it. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize. **

* * *

"So, Tressa, why don't you tell me what happened."

Tressa shuffled awkwardly on the brown leather couch in the middle of the office. Dr. Carson, the therapist, was seated behind the desk in front of her, a clipboard lying on her crossed legs. Tressa sighed and stared down at her hands, which were settled in her lap, before glancing up at the doctor. "Don't you already know? My dad told you over the phone didn't he?"

Dr. Carson nodded her head. "Yes he did, but I want to hear it from you and see it from your point of view."

Tressa nodded her head, trying to silently reassure herself that everything would be ok after this. "O-ok, I guess." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Well, I was watching a movie, The Strangers, when I heard a noise outside." She went on to tell her the details of that night, crying and cringing the whole way through. Dr. Carson nodded along with her and offered her some tissues when needed and waited patiently when Tressa needed to pause when it became too much. "I was so scared." She whispered through her tears.

"I'm sure it was. You know, I believe you made the right choice Tressa. Agreeing to see a therapist is a hard decision for anyone to make, let alone a 14 year old. Talking about it helps you to conquer that fear that builds up. Most people who experience something like this don't see a therapist and end up never being able to live alone or become paranoid. Going to get help after a few days is a much smarter thing to do, something that you should be condemned for. Your father and I are very proud of you." Dr. Carson smiled softly.

"Thank you." Tressa grabbed another tissue from the box and blew her nose. "My dad said that this would be a good idea and I believe him. My father means everything to me." She explained gently. "He said that you would really be able to help. I feel a little better just explaining what happened." She smiled slightly for the first time since stepping into the office.

"That's a good thing." She paused to write something on her clipboard. "Let me ask you about your sleeping patterns. Are you having any nightmares about that night?"

Tressa sighed and nodded her head. "Yes. I wake up screaming before pushing my dad away when he tries to comfort me. It's like I'm in my nightmare and my dad is the guy from that night." She placed her head in her hands. "It's scary."

"I'm sure it is. A traumatic experience can trigger nightmares and such. I'm going to talk to your family doctor after this so we can exchange information and figure something to help you out. I think that this is a case of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Do you know what that is?" Dr. Carson asked gently.

Tressa nodded her head. "Yes. I would be taking medication for that right?"

"You would be along with coming to see me once a week for a little while and then we'll go from there." Dr. Carson stood up and Tressa did as well. "I think that this is enough for tonight. Unless there's something else you want to talk about?"

"Nothing else." Tressa answered quickly, smiling nervously.

Troy had told Dr. Carson about his concerns with Tress and talking about her mother. She understood and decided against bringing her up and just let Tressa be. You only talk about what you're ready to talk about in her office. Dr. Carson smiled as the two walked out of the office, meeting Troy who was sitting in the waiting room. He immediately stood up, dropping the magazine he was reading, and embraced Tressa as she walked over to him. He glanced at the doctor and she smiled at him, motioning for him to step to the other side of the room so they could talk privately. "I'd say that she has a case of PTSD. I'm going to call your family doctor and the two of us will talk things through. I still would like to see Tressa once a week for the time being." She explained quietly.

Troy nodded his head. "She'll be ok though, right?"

Dr. Carson smiled softly, placing a comforting hand on his upper arm. "She'll be fine. She might continue getting nightmares and maybe even a few panic attacks but other than that things will be ok."

"If you do decide to diagnose her with PTSD, she'd be taking some medication for it?"

Dr. Carson smiled. Like father, like daughter. "She would. The medication would take a little while to kick in but once it does, you'll be noticing less and less of the flashbacks and panic attacks."

Troy sighed with relief and walked they walked back over to Tressa. "Thank you for seeing her." He smiled, scheduling another appointment for the following week. "I know it was short notice."

"It's ok Troy." Dr. Carson smiled as she waved her hand, dismissing the thought. "It's my job." She played around on her computer for a minute searching for an opening for the following week. "Alright, how about next Wednesday at 6pm?"

"That sounds good." Troy answered, glancing at Tressa who was sitting in one of the chairs, hugging herself while staring at the wall. He sighed and turned his gaze back on the doctor.

"It's going to take some time Troy." She said sympathetically. "Just be patient with her and keep telling her that you're there for her. She needs you now, more than ever."

Troy smiled slightly. "Thank you, again. We'll see you next week." He grabbed the card from the doctor, saying when the appointment was, and turned on his heel, walking over to Tressa. He kneeled down in front of her chair, placing his hands on her shoulders, gaining her attention. "Are you ready to leave?" He asked softly.

Tressa nodded her head and stood up, whispering "Yeah."

They waved one last time to the therapist before returning home. Once there, Troy went to the kitchen to start dinner while Tressa sat on the couch in the living room, placing her head in her hands. There was a thought running through her head repeatedly and she needed to do some serious thinking about it. "Is there something you want to talk about baby girl?" Troy asked, entering the room and sitting next to her.

Tressa looked up, tears in her eyes, and shook her head. "Not right now daddy." She whispered just as the tears started falling down her cheeks. Troy looked at her, confused, as he wiped away the tears. "You'll understand later daddy." He nodded his head, wishing that she would tell him now rather than later. "I'm going to call Lacey and Aidan." She placed a kiss on his cheek and pulled him in for a hug before walking up the stairs and into her room, keeping the door open slightly in fear.

She pulled out her cell phone and called Aidan first, asking him to come over which he agreed to immediately. Fifteen minutes later, the doorbell rang and she heard Troy answer the door. She took a deep breath before walking down the stairs, smiling slightly when she saw Aidan. "We're going to talk on the porch." She informed Troy who nodded his head. The couple walked onto the porch and took a seat on the swing.

"How are you?" Aidan asked, his arm wrapped around Tressas' shoulder.

"Not good." She swallowed nervously as she turned to face him. "I called you here right now because we need to talk." She closed her eyes, tears building up in them. Aidan looked down briefly before glancing at her again. He knew what was coming just from that last line. Tressa opened her eyes and grabbed his hand, enlacing their fingers. "I know that we haven't been in a relationship very long which makes this even harder." She paused for a minute to think about what she was going to say.

"You're a great guy Aidan. You're sweet, charming, funny the list goes on. I really like you, don't think that I don't. It's just; this week has been really tough on me. My mothers' anniversary and what happened a few nights ago has taken a toll on me emotionally and because of that, I need some time." She placed a hand on his cheek as the tears started spilling out faster. "I'm sorry Aidan, but I'm not emotionally stable for a relationship right now." Aidan closed his eyes as the words hit him full on. "I need some time to put myself back together. I can't have the pressure of a relationship on my shoulders right now."

Aidan nodded his head, opening his eyes. He took a hold of her hand that was on his cheek and held it tightly in his as he kissed the back of it. "I understand Tressa." He whispered, Tressa gasping at his confession. "You thought I would be upset right?" Tressa nodded her head slightly. "I am upset, but not with you. I think it's unfair that all of this has happened to you. You are an amazing person Tressa Bolton and you didn't deserve to have your mother taken away from you and to have some guy break in and do the damage that he has done to you. I can't even imagine the hurt that you're going through right now, but I'm sure that the pressure of a relationship is making it even worse." He explained softly, never letting go of her hand. "Take all the time that you need Tressa because I will be waiting for you." Tressa started crying harder after hearing him say that. Aidan let go of her hand and pulled her in for a tight and comforting hug. "I'm still here for you Tress. If you ever need someone to talk to, you can call me; I'll answer." He held onto her as she cried into his shoulder, clutching onto his shirt.

Minutes later, Tressa lifted her head from his shoulder and wiped her eyes. "Thank you for understanding Aidan. You mean a lot to me." She smiled despite her tears and hugged him again. "I promise, once I'm ready, you'll be the first to know." She whispered into his ear before pulling away from him. She placed a hand gently on his cheek again and leaned down, placing a soft kiss on his lips. She pulled back after a few seconds and dropped her hand.

Aidan stood up from the swing and held out his hand for her. She smiled and grabbed his hand, helping her up. The two walked to the front door before stopping in front of it. Tressa turned around, her back to the door, and glanced at Aidan, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. "I meant what I said Tress. Take all the time you need. Don't worry about how it's going to affect me, your health and you in general are more important to me." He leaned in to place a kiss on her cheek. "Call me if you need anything, no resentment from this." He smiled slightly at her.

Tressa nodded her head, placing a hand on the doorknob and turning it. "Thank you Aidan, if I need anything I'll call." She smiled one last time at him before pushing open the door, walking into the house and closing the door behind her. She leaned against it and slid down to the floor, placing her head in her hands as she started crying silently. Aidan watched the door close and stood on the porch fro a minute longer, taking in everything that had just happened. He closed his eyes as tears threatened to fall, turning away and walking in the direction of his house.

Tressa stood up a few minutes later, wiping her eyes as she walked to the kitchen, seeing her dad cooking on the stove, his back to her. She closed her eyes, the tears deciding not to go away. She opened her eyes and choked back a sob. "Daddy." She called out brokenly, the tears falling yet again. He turned around and instantly ran to her side once he saw the look on her face. She wrapped her arms around his middle as she sobbed into his shoulder. He held onto her tightly, dropping kisses to the top of her head every few seconds until she slowed her sobbing down into hiccups and a few tears. "I broke up with him." She whispered as he led them both to some chairs. They each took a seat, Troy keeping an arm around Tressas' shoulders for support.

"Oh Tress." He whispered, knowing the heartache she was going through from her first break up. "Can I ask why?"

Tressa giggled quietly and nodded her head. "Of course." Her smile dropped as she looked up at him. "I have so much emotional damage from this week that I need some time to fix. I can't have the pressure of a relationship added on with that." She explained and Troy understood where she was coming from. "I need time to heal."

"Tressa, you're a strong girl and I'm so proud of you. I'm sure it wasn't easy for you and won't be for a little while, but you did what you had to do. You knew that you needed time and you took the responsibility to tell Aidan that. He's a good kid Tress, which is why he understood the reason as to why you broke up and didn't age it." Troy stroked her hair soothingly as she nodded her head.

"He told me that he'll wait for me to be ready." Tressa whispered into his shoulder.

Troy smiled. "Because he understands. He wants you to take the time to find yourself and let your heart heal itself from all the blows it's taken this week."

Tressa leaned her head up and smiled at her father. "Thanks daddy. You always know what to say." She kissed his cheek before placing her head back on his shoulder. "I just wish mom was here to talk about this with."

"I know baby girl. I wish she was here too for a lot of things too." He whispered into her hair, closing his eyes as if to say a silent prayer to Sharpay. "But we can't keep thinking like this Tress. I know you wish that she was here but she isn't which is why we have to rely on each other for advice and help."

"You're right daddy." Just as she said that, the doorbell rang. This time, the two of them went to answer the door together since it was getting darker outside making Tressa a little more frightened than before. Once Troy opened the door, Lacey ran inside the house and pulled Tressa in for a bone crushing hug.

"Oh Tressa, I'm so sorry." She whispered, pulling away from her best friend. "Aidan called and told me what happened. He said you might need a girl friend at a time like this." She explained with a smile. She turned to Troy and raised an eyebrow, waving her hand as if to tell him to leave. "Scurry on out of here oldie."

Tressa giggled slightly as Troy rolled his eyes. "Nice to see you too Lacey."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah it's nice to see you too Troy; now leave." She smiled sweetly as Troy mimicked her, leaving the room to enter the kitchen. Lacey rolled her eyes and turned back to her friend. "Are you ok Tress?"

Tressa smiled. "A little bit. It just hurts." She whispered and her eyes watered at the thought of Aidan. "It's going to take some time."

"I know it is. Heartbreaks are never easy sweetie. What you need is some good ole wallowing time." Lacey grinned. "Which is why I invited myself to spend the night." She gestured to the duffel bag on her shoulder. "I have the sappy romance movies taken care of. Do you have the Ben and Jerry's?"

* * *

Later on that night, after three movies and a whole container of double fudge chocolate ice cream, Lacey and Tressa decided that it was time for bed. They walked up the stairs and into Tressas' room making her stop at the door. "What's wrong?" Lacey asked, jumping on Tressas' bed.

"I, uh, haven't slept in here since the night before it happened. I've been staying with my dad." Tressa explained, scared about spending her first night in her room in a few nights. She cautiously stepped in and sat at the computer desk. "I've been too scared to."

"Aw, Tress, I'm sorry." Lacey walked over to her and saw down on the desk. "We can go sleep in his room if you'd like. I can sleep on the floor and can sleep on the bed with him." Lacey suggested with a shrug of her shoulders.

"I don't want to do that to you Lace. Plus, I have to get over my fear somehow right?" Tressa said with an unsure smile. "Just let me go say good night to my dad." She stood up and left the room after Lacey said she was going to get dressed for bed. Tressa knocked on her fathers' door and walked in, seeing him stare at the TV blankly.

"_Let's go swimming." A newly married, 23 year old Troy exclaimed as he bounded up to Sharpay, who was lying on a towel with sunglasses covering her eyes, clearly sun bathing. When he received no answer from his wife, he shook his wet hair, sending droplets of water to fly onto her. _

"_Troy Bolton I'm trying to sun bath here." Sharpay said sternly, opening her eyes to look at her husband of three days. The two were on their honeymoon in Maui, a place where the two had always wanted to go, especially with one another. "I'll go swimming in another hour or so." _

_Troy sighed. "But Pay, I want to go swimming with you now. It's no fun by myself." He pouted, sticking his bottom lip out as he looked at her with big puppy dog eyes. Sharpay rolled her eyes and sat up, removing her sunglasses. _

"_You're lucky you're so darn cute." She muttered, stripping her short shorts off revealing her deep purple bating suit bottoms. She had already taken her shirt of for sun bathing leaving her in halter top, matching the bottoms. She covered her eyes with her sunglasses again as she stood up. _

_Troy smiled brightly and stood up as well, walking behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist, pulling her to his chest. "Thank you PayPay. I love you." He whispered in her ear lovingly, placing a quick kiss there. The two walked to the water, with a bit of difficulty since Troy was still attached to her from behind._

_Sharpay giggled, placing her hands on his arms. "I love you too Troy." Once her feet touched the water, she jumped back from the coldness, her feet landing on Troys'. Troy groaned into her hair, eliciting a small giggle from her. "Sorry." _

"_You will be." And with that, Sharpay took off running down the shore line, Troy following after her quickly, picking her up from behind and spinning her around. She giggled loudly, kicking her feet as she begged to be put down. Troy placed her on her feet and spun her around so she was facing him. "You're so beautiful." He said suddenly, causing Sharpay to blush._

"_That was random." She stated with a laugh. _

"_It's true though." He tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear as it spilled out from the pony tail she had it in. He let his hand linger on his cheek as he placed a soft kiss onto her lips. She wrapped her arms around his neck and responded. "I'm glad you're my wife Pay." He said once he pulled away from her lips. _

"_I'm glad you're my husband." She smiled as she kicked her foot in the water, succeeding in getting Troy wet. She waved her hand and took off again, this time running into the water. He rolled his eyes before running in after her, starting a splashing fight. After a while, Troy pulled her into his arms and they stood in the water hugging, the water up to her shoulders. He started swaying the two of them side to side as if they were dancing in the water before humming her favorite song, then whispering the words in her ear. _

_**I'll be your dream  
I'll be your wish I'll be your fantasy  
I'll be your hope I'll be your love  
Be everything that you need  
I'll love you more with every breath  
Truly, madly, deeply do  
I will be strong I will be faithful  
'cause I'm counting on  
A new beginning  
A reason for living  
A deeper meaning, yeah**_

_Sharpay smiled into his shoulder, holding onto him tightly as her eyes started to water from the sweet gesture he was doing for her. She held onto his shoulders tightly, not wanting to let him go. Troy, feeling her tears, smiled and continued singing._

_**I want to stand with you on  
a mountain  
I want to bathe with you in the sea  
I want to lay like this forever  
Until the sky falls down on me**_

**_And when the stars are shining  
brightly in the velvet sky,  
I'll make a wish send it to heaven  
Then make you want to cry  
The tears of joy for all the  
pleasure and the certainty  
That we're surrounded by the  
comfort and protection of_**

_Sharpay kissed his shoulder lovingly as she started to hum the tune to the song. She dropped one of her hands in search for one of his which were secured tightly around her waist. She found his and laced her fingers with his, squeezing his hand as a thank you._

_**The highest powers  
In lonely hours  
The tears devour you**_

_**I want to stand with you on  
a mountain  
I want to bathe with you in the sea  
I want to lay like this forever  
Until the sky falls down on me**_

_**Oh can you see it baby?  
You don't have to close your eyes  
'Cause it's standing right  
before you  
All that you need will surely come**_

_**I'll be your dream I'll be your wish  
I'll be your fantasy  
I'll be your hope I'll be your love  
Be everything that you need  
I'll love you more with every breath  
Truly, madly, deeply do**_

_**I want to stand with you on a  
mountain  
I want to bathe with you in the sea  
I want to live like this forever  
Until the sky falls down on me**_

_Once he finished the song, Sharpay pulled her head off of his shoulder and turned his head so he was facing her. She smiled brightly as she leaned up, placing a thank you kiss onto his lips. He smiled into the kiss as he laced their other hands together as well. "Troy, that was beautiful." She whispered, not wanting to kill the mood that they had going. _

_Troy leaned his forehead against hers, closing his eyes in bliss. "Anything to put a smile on your face." He said softly, pecking her lips lovingly. "I just want you to be happy Pay. You deserve it." _

_Sharpays' tears started again at that moment. Hearing the sweet words come out of his mouth made her heart swell and eyes water. "I'm happy with you Troy Bolton." She took a deep breath to steady her tears. "I'm happy with you and only you." _

"Daddy?"

Troy shook his head as he heard his daughters' voice. He smiled at her and waved her over and she jumped onto the bed next to him. She took a seat next to him and laced her arm through one of his, like always. "Are you ok?"

Troy smiled. "Perfect."

Tressa, noticing the giddy smile, realized that he was reliving a memory with her mother and smiled softly. "I love you daddy." She hugged him tightly before pulling back, placing a kiss on his cheek. "I just wanted to say good night."

"Good night baby." He whispered as he kissed her forehead. "If you need anything during the night, you come and get me. Got it?" He asked, pointing a finger at her.

"Got it daddy." She smiled. "Can you come and check on me a few times before you go to sleep? It's my first time sleeping back in my room since, well, you know and I'm kind of scared." Tressa asked nervously, playing with her fingers.

"Of course I will. If you get scared at all, you come and get me. You're my first priority baby girl." He kissed her forehead again and watched as she jumped off the bed, walking towards the door.

"I will daddy, I promise. I love you."

"I love you too princess. I'll see you in the morning." He smiled as she left the room, closing the door behind her. "Oh, and tell Lacey no more pranks in this house." He screamed after her, remembering the last time Lacey spent the night. Let's just say, it's took days to get the blue hair dye out of his hair.

He heard Tressa giggle from the hallway before his door opened again and Laceys' head popped through the crack, smiling evilly. "Maybe, Mr. B, if you're lucky." She giggled and walked into the room, giving him a hug. He accepted the hug and returned it. "Night Troy."

"Good night Lacey. If you need anything at all during the night, don't hesitate to come and get me." He smiled and patted her back before she pulled away and walked to the door.

"I will. Thanks for letting me stay the night without any notice." Lacey added just before she left.

"You're always welcome here Lacey. Good night girls and please be quiet, I want to get some sleep sometime soon." He teased and the two girls gasped, both entering the room with a pillow in their hands. Troys' eyes went wide as the girls attacked him. He tried to reach for his own but couldn't get to it with two pillows flying at his face so e defendedhimsef by puttinguphis arms toblock is face. Lacey and Tressa stopped after a few minute, giggling loudly. "Not fair, I wasn't ready." Troy pouted.

"Oh boo woo." Lacey faked a pout before laughing again. "Wittle Twoy is sad."

Tressa laughed as she high fived her best friend. "You deserved it, telling us we talk a lot and loudly. Humph." The two girls walked out of the room after grabbing their pillows leaving Troy to roll his eyes at them. "Teenagers."

* * *

**Well, I wasn't entirely sure how to end this chapter so that's why the end may seem a little weird. Lacey has been best friends with Tressa since they were in kindergarten which is why Lacey hugged Troy good night without it being awkward and was joking with him when she first arrived. I'm sorry if you guys hated Tressa breaking up with Aidan but I think it fits. If I were in her situation, I would probably do the same thing. Also, I've never been to a therapist so I don't know if what I have written is the real deal or not so please just bear with me on that. So, I think that's it! Lol Please review! **

**P.S. - The song used in this chapter is 'Truly, Madly, Deeply' by Savage Garden. Incredible song! **


	14. Chapter 14

**Thank you guys so much for the awesome reviews. I'm sorry I haven't updated this in a while but I've been trying to rotate through my other stories as well. I hope you enjoy this chapter. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize. **

* * *

Aidan walked into his house and sighed deeply, shutting the door behind him. He walked into the kitchen, hands in his pockets, where his mother was, tons of papers and bills on the table as she shuffled through them. She had her calculator next to her and was furiously scribbling some numbers onto a sheet of paper. "I see it's the monthly bill time?" Aidan asked jokingly.

Haylie looked up from the papers and smiled slightly. "What gave it away?" She brushed some hair out of her face and blew a sigh out of her mouth to move the bangs that were in her face. She glanced at her son and noticed the frown on his face as he took a seat across from her. "What's wrong sweetie?" She took her reading glasses off.

"Tressa broke up with me." He placed his head in his hands. "She said that she needs some time to put herself back together after everything that has happened this week. I don't blame her though. I just wish none of this had happened to her."

Haylie looked at her son and placed a hand on his arm gently. "I'm so sorry, baby. First break ups are always the worst. But I think that she did the right thing and put herself before a relationship." Aidan looked up at her after she said that. "I know, that's not very comforting but it's true. I know you Aidan, I know that you'll give her the time she needs and still be there for her because I raised you to be a gentleman. I could tell that you really cared for her and you will continue to. Things will get better, she will get better and she'll tell you when she's ready for a relationship. All you have to do is wait, which might sound long and boring, but trust me- she'll appreciate it in the end." Haylie finished sweetly, patting his arm twice.

"I know mom. It's just hard." He sighed deeply. "I wish she didn't have those problems to deal with."

"You can wish all you want; sweetie, but it won't change anything. Everything that happens in her life is what makes her, her. But, I'm so proud of you for helping her the way that you are. Sometimes it's nice to have friends to talk to instead of family. Continue to comfort her; she needs it now more than ever." She kissed his forehead before leaving the room, letting him think about what she said.

* * *

"_Ladies and gentlemen, give it up for the bride and groom!" The DJ announced and in walked Sharpay and Troy, still dressed in their tux and gown, holding hands and waving at their family and friends. "Right now, the bride and groom will share their first dance." He added. The newly weds walked to the center of the dance floor and started gently swaying in each others' arms as their wedding song 'I'll Be' by Edwin McCain played. Troy smiled down on Sharpay softly, leaning his forehead against his as he closed his eyes contently. _

"_We're married." Sharpay whispered, her lips touching his gently as she spoke._

_Troy chuckled as he opened his eyes. "That we are PayPay." He smiled before capturing her lips in a chaste kiss, pulling away seconds later to look her in the eyes. "So, how much to you want to bet our mom's are crying their eyes out right now?" He joked._

_Sharpay giggled, leaning her head on his shoulder. "Troy, what am I going to do with you?" _

"_Seriously." He said as he looked up to glance at his mother who was leaning against Jack as she cried silently, watching her little boy dance his first dance as a husband. "Yup, it's like a waterfall." He whispered as she laughed against his shoulder. "You should see it. And don't even get me started on your mother." He teased, grinning as he looked at Lyndsey who was wiping her eyes with a tissue. "Two waterfalls for her." _

"_Troy, you're crazy." She kissed his cheek and secretly snuck a peek at both mothers, giggling when he noticed that he was right. "They're just happy for us." _

"_And providing entertainment for us." He laughed before finishing the dance quietly, enjoying the moment with his wife. Once the song ended, they pulled away from each other and smiled at their family and friends, waving at a few of them. The family quickly took pictures while Troy and Sharpay were still in their outfits. After about an hour of talking and conversing with everyone, the DJ interrupted them. _

"_Ladies and gentlemen, it's time for the bride to dance with her father." He announced, Sharpay grinning as her father walked over to her, holding out his hand for her. She took it happily, the two walking out to the dance floor. Vance twirled her before holding her hand, his other sitting on her upper back. "Congratulations baby girl." _

"_Thanks daddy." She kissed his cheek lovingly. "You look great in your suit." _

_Vance laughed. "Look at you, all grown up. Where's my little girl that was playing with Barbies on the living room floor, her hair in pigtails, waiting for me to come home?" He smiled softly as he placed a curl behind her ear, tears springing to his eyes. _

"_Oh, daddy. I'm still here, just a bit more grown up." She giggled as tears made their way down her cheeks. "I'll always be your little girl, don't ever think otherwise. I love you daddy." _

"_I love you too princess." _

"_And now any other father/daughters and mother/sons out there may join the bride and her father." The DJ said into the microphone. Troy smiled and walked over to his mother who was wiping her eyes on a tissue before grabbing his hand that he held out and walked to the dance floor with him. "You look so handsome." Lucille commented, fixing his tie quickly. _

"_Mom, stop it." He whined jokingly, spinning his mother before dipping her unexpectedly. She squealed in surprise and slapped his arm when he set her back on her feet. "Troy Alexander, warn a girl next time." She scolded a smile on her face the whole time. _

_He chuckled and kissed her cheek. "I'm sorry mom. You know I love you." He said sincerely. _

"_And I love you too baby." She patted his cheek with one hand before placing a kiss on his forehead in a maternal manner. _

Tressa quickly shut her lap top closed, stopping the wedding video she was quietly watching, as she heard a knock on her door. Just as Troy walked in, she covered the computer with her blanket. He looked at her curiously as he walked into the room, lying down on the bed next to her. "Whatcha doing?" He asked in a sing song voice.

"Nothing." She answered quickly, hinting to her father that she was lying.

"And I'm rich." He said sarcastically, reaching under the blanket and pulling out her lap top. "What were you doing on here?" He asked as he opened the top of it, typing in her password that she gave him. He watched as the video player came up and saw the video paused when he and his mother were dancing at his wedding. "Oh." He muttered sadly, his eyes never leaving the screen as he hit the play button. She cuddled up with him to show her that she was there for him.

"_I see you figured out how to work the zoom button." They could hear Taylor say to Chad behind the camera. Tressa and Troy laughed together as they heard Chad sigh obnoxiously, Taylor giggling in the video as well._

"_I did Tay. I'm not stupid, I can figure out a camera." _

"_Coming from the man who can't even work a can opener." Taylor added, laughing as he rolled his eyes, the camera still focused on the couples dancing on the dance floor. She took a seat next to him and shook her head, smiling brightly. _

"_That thing is confusing." Chad exclaimed, earning a laugh from everyone near them. "I'm sure I'm not the only one who can't use it." He mumbled, turning his attention back to the dance floor. By this time, Troy was dancing with Lyndsey and Jack was dancing with Sharpay. _

"_Lyndsey, you look gorgeous today." Troy said charmingly, throwing her a wide grin to match his tone. _

_Lyndsey giggled. "Thank you Troy. You don't look bad yourself." _

_Troy twirled her quickly in a circle. "I never look bad. I always look better than before but never bad." He joked, sharing a laugh with his mother in law. "Pay looks like an angel today." He whispered as he smiled over at his wife who was laughing at a joke his dad had said. _

_Lyndsey smiled softly, seeing the look of adoration on his face. "I'm happy my little girl found someone who treats her like a princess. You and her are going to last a long time Troy. Treat her right, not that I have to tell you to." Lyndsey smiled up at him. _

"_I would never treat her like anything less than a princess." He said seriously. "She's my world." _

"_I think Troy's jealous that I'm dancing with the beautiful bride." Jack charmed, just like Troy had, as the two turned to look at Troy who was looking over at them, smiling softly. _

_Sharpay laughed. "I think so too. But he can wait; right now it's my time to dance with my father in law." She smiled at him. _

"_Exactly. Maybe now you can whip my boy into shape. Although, you already know how difficult and messy he can be after living with him for a year." Sharpay rolled her eyes as she thought about how messy Troy really was._

"_He's a pig." Sharpay stated, remembering how she almost used his boxers as a towel to wipe her face dry. What they were doing on the towel rack was beyond her. "But, I love him so it's worth putting up with." She whispered lovingly. _

"She really did put up with my messiness." Troy smiled softly, telling Tressa the story of their wedding while watching the video of it on her computer. Now, the two were lying on their stomachs with the lap top in front of them, Tressas' feet swinging behind her as her head leaned against his shoulder.

"Your boxers on the towel rack?" Tressa questioned, giggling slightly.

Troy chuckled as he looked down on her. "I don't even know how they got there."

"That's so gross." Tressa faked a gag, laughing when Troy nudged her with his elbow. "But of course mom put up with you. It's a sacrifice you make for love."

Troy smiled gently at his daughter, putting an arm around her shoulders. "It is. Something you'll find out about when you fall in love later on in life." He told her. "Way later on in life. Like when your forty years old, if that." He said, exaggerating the word 'way.' "Maybe even fifty."

Tressa giggled as she shoved his arm off her shoulders. "Daddy, stop it. I'll fall in love when the time is right. I can't change fate." She explained as she glanced up at him. He stared at her for a minute before busting out into laughter.

He took a few minutes to laugh of the humor in her statement, which she didn't see. "Please, you'll fall in love when I say you can." Troy said sternly, pointing a finger at his daughter and his eyebrows raised.

"I was serious daddy. You can't tell me what to do after the age of eighteen, including falling in love." She smiled proudly. "So put that in your juice box and suck on it." She said, laughing when she saw her fathers' shocked expression after hearing that. "I'm kidding about the juice box thing dad. You're too old to understand it. It's a teenage thing." She sighed dramatically. "Oh well. Youth doesn't last forever."

Troys' jaw dropped as he took in what his daughter just said. "I'm young and hip." He defended lamely.

"Daddy, when parents say 'hip,' you know they're old." Tressa said matter of factly.

"Not true."

"Yes it is."

"No it's not."

"Daddy, it is true. Don't argue with me about this. You're getting old, embrace it." She giggled, running a hand through her hair to push it out of her face. "It's ok though, because I still love you."

Troys' humor immediately dropped, his heart soaring when he heard the terms of endearment. "I love you too Tressa. Always will."

"So, wasn't Uncle Chad your best man at your wedding?" Tressa questioned curiously.

Troy nodded his head, fast forwarding to something on the computer. "He was. Listen to his best man speech at the reception, you'll laugh." He said and pressed play.

"_Dude, it's time for you to give your speech." Zeke nudged Chad who was downing his second beer of the night since there was a free bar there already paid for by the bride and groom. _

_Chad rolled his eyes and stood up, fixing his shirt and walking over to the DJ stand. "Dude, can I borrow the microphone for a sec?" He asked, taking it from the DJ when it was handed to him. He brought it up to his lips and cleared his throat, gaining everyone's attention. "For those of you who don't know me, I'm Chad, the best man. First of all, I'd like to give a serious congratulations to the newly weds." He smiled at Troy and Sharpay who nodded at him. "I've known Troy pretty much my whole life. I consider him more like a brother to me, can't you see the resemblance?" He joked, earning a laugh from everyone. "Anyway, I don't normally get all sappy and have heart-to-hearts with people so remember this because I'm only going to say this once. Troy is a great guy. Because we're like brothers, I know that I can trust him with anything and always know that he'll be there for me when I need help. He's someone that can get along with anyone and is a life long friend once you get to know him. As a friend and a brother, congratulations man." He raised his glass of water up towards Troy along with everyone else. Troy smiled appreciatively at Chad and nodded his head at him. _

"_I'm not done yet so don't everyone get excited just yet." Chad teased after taking a sip of his water. "I also want to say something to Sharpay." He said, smiling softly at her. "We didn't exactly get along until you started dating Troy and even then we had our moments and probably will until the day we die." He laughed with Sharpay. "But, Troy always chooses the right people to surround himself with, which is why I love you like a little sister. I have gotten to know you a lot throughout the years and can tell that you are a very caring person once you dig down deep, way deep. Way, way, way deep." He exaggerated, Sharpay rolling her eyes at him. "What I'm trying to say is that you're a great person, Sharpay, and the perfect person for my best friend. Congratulations you two and I hope you pop out a baby soon so I can be a godfather." He added jokingly, laughing as he saw Troy and Sharpay fidget in their seats but laugh along with everyone else. _

_Sharpay blew a kiss at him and clapped with the crowd, her and Troy standing up to thank him when he walked over to them. She pulled him in for a hug and kissed his cheek. "Thank you Chad. That was beautiful." _

_Chad smiled and hugged Troy as well, wishing them a congratulations before handing the microphone of to Gabriella, since she was the Maid of Honor, so she could give her mini speech as well. "Well, firstly I'd like to say congrats to the newly weds as well. They both hold such a special place in my heart. I met them both back in high school when I moved there. After a month of being there, I started dating Troy before he ended the relationship a half a year later, both not really feeling anything. After the Lava Springs incident," The gang laughed as they made eye contact with each other, remembering the infamous summer. "Things changed. I started falling for my current boyfriend, Ryan Evans." She smiled at him. "And Sharpay started to become more caring towards people. The two of us started to hang out and soon enough if was Shar, Kels, Tay, Martha and I hanging out every weekend, like best friends. I could see the way Troy and Sharpay would look at each other, like they wanted to tell each other how they felt but were too scared to. It was kinda cute." She giggled along with the girls there. "Soon enough, after lots of planning from the girls and I, we managed to set the two of them up on a date by faking a group hangout night, the two of them only showing up." _

_She cleared her throat quickly before continuing. "The next day, I got a call from Shar who was squealing into the phone and said, and I quote, 'O-M-G Troy kissed me last night." She laughed along with Sharpay who blushed a light pink. Troy looked over at her and grabbed her hand, kissing her cheek. "It was the funniest thing. Anyways, you guys should thank the gang; we're the ones who got you together in the first place." She teased, the gang nodding their heads in agreement. "So, I'll finish this up now. Sharpay, you're like the sister I've never had. I'm so happy that you found the perfect person for you. Someone who finishes you sentences for you, who compliments you like there's no tomorrow, who treats you the way you deserve, which I'm sure your father could agree with." Vance nodded his head furiously. "And Troy, you're my best friend. You understood me when we first met and will always be someone that I can count on to talk to because like Chad said, you're there for anybody when they need something hands down. I love you both and congrats again." She smiled at them and blew a kiss, smiling at the attention when everyone clapped afterwards. _

"Aww…Aunt Gabi and Uncle Chad were so sweet." Tressa gushed, tears in her own eyes at their speeches. "And Uncle Chad was funny too." She giggled as she glanced at Troy who seemed deep in thought, a graceful smile on his face as he paused the video, staring at the paused picture of Sharpay smiling and seeing him and Sharpays' enlaced hands. Tressa didn't interrupt his moment and let him stare at the picture for a few minutes before he shook his head and looked back over at her, tears silently falling down his cheeks. "Oh daddy." She said brokenly and pulled him in for a hug, letting him lean his head on her shoulder to cry on.

Troy clutched onto her as he gave himself some time to collect himself and in a sense drain everything out. He felt Tressa start to stroke his hair comfortingly and rub his back soothingly which made him feel at ease knowing that she was there for him. Minutes later, he pulled away and gave her a small smile. "Sometimes it just gets to me." He whispered, noticing that she closed the computer for him.

"It's allowed to get to you, daddy. If it didn't, I'd be worried." She said quietly, still rubbing his back since she could tell he wasn't fully together yet. "Feeling better?"

Troy sat up on the bed and placed his feet on the ground, still sitting on the edge of the bed. He put his head in his hands and took a few minutes to think and relax himself. "I just need some time Tress." He mumbled.

"Ok daddy. I'm going to go start dinner. You go to your room and get ready for bed. I'll go do the dishes and lock the doors." She kissed his the side of his head and left her room, walking down the stairs slowly as she blew her hair out of her face. She sighed as she walked into the kitchen, wishing there was something she could do to make him feel better, to cheer him up. Just as she was about to turn the sink on, she heard something knock over one of the trashcans outside in the backyard. Thinking the worst and having flashbacks from that night, she screamed loudly, sinking down to the floor while covering her face with her hands. "Daddy!" She yelled out, sobbing by this time because her flashback was in full force.

Seconds later, Troy skidded into the room, his face contorted into fear and worry as he saw his daughter sobbing on the floor against the counters. He ran over to her and lifted her up into his arms, sitting on the floor and putting her on his lap. "Sh, Tressa. It's ok, I'm here now." He whispered frantically as he rocked her back and forth.

"I heard something outside." She cried out, grasping his shirt in her hands tightly, burying her head into his shoulder. "I thought the worst and started reliving that night." She explained once she calmed down, hiccupping every few seconds. "It's like every little noise I hear at night triggers an attack. I want this to go away." She said brokenly, looking up at her father with her eyes red and brimmed with tears.

"I know you do baby girl. I want this to go away as well but it's going to take some time. I promise you that everything will be ok Tressa." Troy kissed her forehead and patted her arm.

"I believe daddy because you always keep your promises." She whispered as she wiped her cheeks with the sleeve of her shirt, sniffling quietly. "Can you look outside for me though?"

Troy smiled as he nodded his head, standing up and pulling her with him. "I will. Do you want to wait here or come with me?" He asked softly, grabbing a baseball bat to soothe her fear just incase.

"I'll come. I don't want to be alone." She linked her arm with his and the two stepped outside quietly, looking around the backyard. They walked over to the side of the house when Troy stopped, looking back at Tressa. "It must've been the wind. The trashcan tipped over."

Tressa let out a sigh of relief and loosened her grip on his arm. "Sorry I dragged you out here and for freaking out." She apologized as they turned to walk back inside after picking up the garbage can.

"It's ok Tressa. You're going through a hard time right now and I'm here for you every step of the way." By this time, they were in the kitchen. "Do you need anything else Tress?"

"No. I'm going to get ready for bed. Can I sleep with you again?" She asked hopefully.

"Sure thing. I'll be up soon." He kissed her forehead and watched her hug herself as she left the room fearfully. She climbed the stairs and walked into her room, leaving the door open a crack, and pulled out her cell phone. She punched in the number and her thumb lingered over the call button, not knowing if she wanted to do this. Her thumb had a mind of it's own as it pushed the button. She brought the phone to her ear and listened to it ring before someone answered. "Hello?"

Tressa cleared her throat nervously. "Hi."

Aidan smiled brightly as he leaned up in his bed, pushing himself against the headboard of it. "Tressa. Hi. How are you?"

"I've been better. You said I could call anytime I needed to talk so is now ok?" She asked cautiously, placing herself on her bed as she laid on her stomach.

"Now's perfect. What's up?"

"Well, my dad and I watched a video from his and my moms' wedding and I could tell that he was really upset. It's so hard for me to see him so…broken. I just want him to be happy again." She sighed deeply, putting her hair in a ponytail.

"Tressa, he's happy with you. It may not be with your mother but you make him happy. He's so proud of you and wants what's best for you. Don't ever doubt how happy he is." Aidan explained softly, a smile coming to her lips.

"Thanks Aidan. Sometimes I just need to talk to someone other than my dad."

"Understandable. I really am here for you." He smiled even though she couldn't see it. "How has your therapy been?"

Tressa smiled at his concern. "It's been going good. I've only had two sessions so far so there's nothing much to talk about with that. It's been really helpful though. Also, I'm thinking about going back to school soon. I haven't talked about it with my dad but I don't want to just sit around the house all day, you know?"

Aidan chuckled. "I can imagine it being a little…boring. It would be nice to have you back and school and to make sure you're ok in person." He said as he twirled a pencil from his desk in his hands. "Not that I'm telling you what to do or anything so don't base your decision off of that." He asked hastily.

"It's ok Aidan. Thank you though. I just can't sit around and let this tear me apart. I need to move on which is the only way to fully recover. I'm going to talk to my dad about this tomorrow. Do you have any ideas of what I can do to cheer him up? I'm at a loss but I want to do something for him to show him just how amazing he is even though sometimes he doesn't think so."

"Why don't you throw a party or something for him? Bring all of his friends and your family down and have everyone tell him how unbelievable he is." Aidan suggested with a shrug of his shoulders.

Tressas' eyes lit up. "That's a good idea. Then I could play some clips of him growing up and get them from my grandma and grandpa. I could put together a video collage of him and my mom from all of the pictures and videos I have of them. Thank you so much Aidan, you're a life saver!" She squealed as she thought about the idea.

He laughed. "Let's not get to crazy here. I'm glad I could help though. Let me know your plans later on and I'll help you out with planning if you want." He offered kindly.

"Thanks Aidan, I'll get back to you when I need help. Gosh this is perfect." She giggled. "I'll let you get back to sleep though since you have school tomorrow. You're a great guy Aidan. I appreciate everything you're doing for me."

"It's not a problem Tress. Have a good night alright?" He asked teasingly.

"Sure. Sweet dreams." She giggled, hanging up the phone after saying good night one last time. She bit her lip excitedly as she put her phone down and thought about the idea even more in her head. A knock interrupted her thoughts and she smiled when her dad stuck his head in the door.

"Ready kiddo?" He asked.

"Yeah." She grabbed her stuffed monkey and put her glasses on her nightstand before following him into his room. The two laid down and turned the lights off before finally getting some sleep after saying good night, Tressa smiling as she slept.

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**Well? What'd you think of it? I thought it was ok. I personally loved the flashbacks in this chapter, probably my favorite of all of them. But, your opinions matter to me so tell me what you thought of them! **

**Also, when Aidan has his talk with his mom in the beginning, it takes place the same night Tressa broke up with him. When the flashbacks start, it's a few days later.**

**I can't wait to write the party scene, although it'll be a few chapters later, but there will be small flashbacks in that chapter. **

**Please review!! **


	15. Chapter 15

**Gosh, you guys are so sweet. I love, as always, your reviews. They are incredible.**

**Also, I just wanted to let you know that I'm going to be wrapping this story up soon. A few more chapters before its ending (I'm thinking 3 or 4). I feel like this story would be dragging on if I kept going and going…and going. I wanted to show the relationship between Tressa and Troy grow as she experienced high school and grew up and I feel that I've accomplished that. I also wanted to show how close they are and how Troy keeps Sharpays' memory alive and, again, I feel like I've done that already. **

**I hope you guys aren't upset with my decision and continue to read my stories in the future because all of your support is incredible! :)**

**Another AN: I'm sorry about updating so late. I've been working non-stop all summer! No joke. I've barely had time to spend with my friends and hang out in general. I wanted to update FYIY but have a slight case of writers block with it. I'm trying to get through that ASAP because I really enjoy writing that story, along with my other ones of course. Hopefully that story will be updated next. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize. **

* * *

"Hello?"

Tressa squealed quietly into the phone, trying not to attract the attention of her father who was just down the hall in his room. "Grandma? It's Tressa." She said as she peeked out into the hallway and heard her father talking on his cell phone to Chad.

"Oh Tressa dear. How are you?" Lucille asked excitedly as Jack entered the room upon hearing his granddaughters' name.

"I'm good. How are you and grandpa?"

"We're just fine."

"That's great. Listen, I have an idea that I need your help with." She whispered, hiding the phone behind her back as Troy peeked in her room and smiled at her. "I'm going down to watch TV alright?" He asked her. She quickly nodded her head as he looked at her suspiciously.

"K daddy. I'll be down soon." She said, motioning for him to leave the room. He chuckled and left, closing the door behind him. "No! Leave it a crack open." She yelled out to him fearfully. He opened it a bit and apologized before running down the stairs. Tressa smiled and brought the phone up to her ear. "Sorry about that, my dad came in. I have a surprise in mind for him."

"A surprise?" Jack asked.

"Yes. Lately he's been focusing all of his attention on me because of what happened and I want to do something for him in return. I want to throw him a party." She stated excitedly.

"Oh, sounds interesting." Lucille giggled as her and Jack sat on their couch, the phone on speaker and resting in her palm. "When is this party going to take place?"

"I want to do it this weekend that is if everyone is going to be free."

"We're not doing anything. We'd love to help out in anyway we can." Jack added.

"I'm glad you mentioned that. See, I want to make him a video of him growing up with all of his friends and family, including mom." She said, whispering the last part. "I need some pictures if you have any."

"Oh that just sounds incredible. I have tons of them here if you want to drop by sometime this week. I can pick you up on Wednesday how's that?" Lucille squealed excitedly. "We can go out to lunch and talk about your plan."

Tressa giggled at her bubbliness. "Sure grandma. But I gotta go now, my dad's coming up the stairs. Call me tomorrow night and we'll settle dates and times." Tressa whispered, hearing her dads' footsteps get closer to her room.

"Alright sweetie. We love you."

"Love you too. Bye." She hung up her phone and shoved it in the pocket of her hoodie just as Troy walked in, sitting on the edge of her bed with a suspicious look on his face. "Hey daddy." She said innocently, batting her eye lashes.

He looked down at where she covered the phone then back up at her. "Tressa, what are you doing?" He asked slowly, the look he was giving her made her giggle.

"Nothing daddy." She smiled innocently. "I promise it's nothing."

"I guess I'll believe you for now. Anyways, I just wanted to let you know that I'm going to the store right now." He said, watching as her face contorted into fear at the thought of being left alone. "Do you want to come with or should I call Uncle Chad up to stay with you?"

Tressas' face brightened at the thought of Chad; he could surely help with her party plan. "Uncle Chad is fine. I need to learn to move on and the first step is to stop following you wherever you go." Tressa explained, smiling softly at him as she leaned up and hugged him tightly. "Just make sure you pick up some popcorn, barbeque chips, twizzlers, pretzels, soda and pizza making ingredients so we can have our pizza and movie night tonight."

Troys' face brightened at the idea. "We haven't had one of those nights in years." He whispered.

"I know which is why we're way over due for one." She smiled, walking out of the room with him and down the stairs. "Pick up The Transformers 2 since we wanted to see that movie together." She added as he called Chad up quickly and asked him to come over for an hour or so.

* * *

"That's my dad?" Tressa asked incredulously an hour later, a giggle slipping out of her mouth as she pointed to a picture of Troy from junior high. Apparently he decided that bleach blonde hair was 'in style' and he had a gap in between his two front teeth. "He looks like a dork." She laughed, looking up at Chad. The two of them were sitting on the living room floor, leaning their backs against the couch with his arm around her shoulder protectively.

"That's him." Chad nodded his head, letting a chuckle of his own slip out as he glanced at the picture again.

"Wow." Tressa set the picture down and picked up the next one. They were going through pictures that Chad had brought over to help with the gift for the party that weekend. Chad, being Troys' best friend and all, had plenty of pictures and videos of the two of them. "What the heck is going on in this picture?" She asked, smiling as she held up the picture closer to Chad.

Chad grabbed the picture and started laughing. "This was right after he slipped in mud as he tried to catch his little cousin who was running around with his teddy bear." He recalled.

"Teddy bear? He's like 12 in the picture. Isn't that a little old to be cuddling with a teddy bear?"

"Coming from the girl who still sleeps with a stuffed monkey." Chad returned, smiling victoriously when she pouted before setting the picture down, shuffling through a few more, whispering 'touché.' A few minutes later, the doorbell rang causing the two of them to look at one another, confused. "He knows he can walk into this own house right?" Chad asked, thinking it was Troy as he went to answer the door, shocked to see Lucille and Jack Bolton on the doorstep.

"Well, aren't you going to let us in?" Lucille teased, smiling as Chad rolled his eyes and moved to the side, opening the door wider to let them in. "Thank you Chad." She hugged him quickly before squealing and embracing Tressa. "My darling grand daughter, you are beautiful." She said as if she hadn't seen Tressa in a long time.

Tressa giggled as she pulled away from her grandmother. "You look great grandma. Thanks for coming." She noticed Jack standing to the side and ran over to him, jumping into his arms and he spun her around. "Grandpa!"

He grunted after a few seconds and put her down gently. "You're getting too big for that." He muttered, placing a hand on his back as he took a seat on the couch.

"Someone's getting old." Chad sang, stifling his laughter as he saw his old coach glare at him.

The women rolled their eyes as they sat down in different chairs. "So, I've got a box of videos and pictures in the car. We can kick the guys out tomorrow for a guys day and we can make the video tomorrow on your computer." Lucille explained, Tressa agreeing.

"Sounds awesome." Tressa grinned; this was going to be perfect.

The front door slammed shut as someone walked through, making all of their heads turn comically towards the living room entrance. "So, Tress, I picked up the ingredients when do you want to-?" Troy stopped mid sentence as he walked into the room and noticed his parents. "Mom? Dad?" He asked incredulously, placing the grocery bags on the coffee table and embracing his mother. He kissed her on the cheek before hugging his father. "What are you doing here?"

Lucille scoffed. "Can't we visit our only child? You make it seem like a crime."

"I'm sorry mom." Troy apologized, sitting next to her on the couch and pacing an arm around her shoulders. "I'm happy you guys are here. I haven't seen you since Tressas' birthday."

"You don't mind if we stay, do you?" Jack asked hesitantly.

Troy and Tressa both shook their heads furiously. "Of course we don't." Troy argued.

"We want you guys here." Tressa added to play along, fooling Troy into believing that she had no idea why they were there. "Daddy and I were just going to have a daddy/daughter night." She explained.

"Well then your grandma and I will go out for dinner and dessert while you two have your night." Jack said, smiling, as he stood up and grabbed Lucilles' hand. "Come on. We'll put our stuff in the guest room then be out of your hair for the night."

"And I'll just go home. I'm sure Tay is wondering where I am." Chad said as he stood up as well. He grabbed his keys from the table and opened up his arm. Tressa giggled as she jumped into them and wrapped her own arms around his middle. "See you later booger."

"You too fro boy." She responded and walked him out. Once she came back in, she sat down next to Troy and leaned her head on his shoulder. "When can we start the pizzas?"

* * *

"That movie was awesome!" Tressa exclaimed as Troy turned the TVV off. "The effects were amazing!" Troy chuckled as he listened to his daughter rave about the movie, her smile brighting up the room. "And Shia Labeof is so cute!" She gushed. Troy rolled his eyes as he stood up and took the empty plates to the kitchen, Tressa following behind talking endlessly. "Did you like it?"

Troy laughed as she finally realized he was still there. "It was ok." He shrugged, smirking when he heard her gasp.

"Just ok? It was sooo good!" She said excitedly, walking over to him and hugging him unexpectedly. "Thanks for tonight daddy. I had a lot of fun!" She whispered into his shoulder.

He smiled and hugged her back. "I did too Tress."

"Can we talk for a minute?" She asked, pulling away and sitting on one of the island stools. She saw him nod as he took a seat next to her, confused. "I want to go back to school tomorrow."

Troy blinked. "What?"

"I want to go back to school. I've been stuck in this house for too long. I'm going to go insane if I have to stay here another day." She explained dramatically. "And you need to get back to work before they fire you for using too many sick days."

"Tress, I don't care if I lose my job. I just want you to be safe and happy, even if that means giving up my job. You're my daughter and it's my job to protect you. I already let you down once, I won't do it again." He admitted brokenly, bowing his head in shame.

Tressa gasped at his confession. "Let me down? Dad, you've done nothing but be an amazing father. You went out for one night. It's not your fault that it happened."

"If I hadn't gone out, then nothing would have happened to you." He argued, placing his head in his hands. "I would do anything to take that night back and protect you." He said to himself.

Tressa grabbed a hold of his hand tightly. "Dad, please don't do this. It's killing me. I hate to see you blaming yourself like this." She whispered sternly, noticing that he didn't say anything. Desperate times calls for desperate measures. "What would mom think of this?" She asked, watching as his head shot up and stared at her. "What would she think of you blaming yourself?"

He took a deep breathe as he thought about it. After a minute or two, he answered. "She would think how I feeling guilty is wrong and that I couldn't have prevented the guy from being here that night, whether I was there or not." He bit his lip as he looked up her shamefully. "I'm sorry Tress. It's just so hard to see my little princess go through something like this."

"I know it's hard for you." Tressa lifted his head so he was looking at her. "But I'll be ok. Because, again, you raised a strong girl. Just know that I don't blame you for this and I never will." She leaned in and kissed his cheek. "Blaming yourself is going to do nothing for you. We can't dwell on the what ifs because it didn't happen. You can't go back in time so we have to move on from where we are."

Troy sucked in a breath. "Tressa, you have got to be one of the most mature 14 year olds I have ever met. You are absolutely right." He smiled a small smile. "I wish I could have been more intelligent when I was your age." He shook his head. "It's going to take a while for me to stop blaming myself. You'll understand one day when you're a parent. When something happens to your child, you can't help but to blame yourself." He explained. "I love you so much Tressa."

"I love you too daddy, you know that." She giggled softly as she hugged him tightly. "We have got to stop having these heart to hearts all the time." She joked, earning a chuckle form him.

"True. It's what I get for having a daughter, always emotional and sappy." He rolled his eyes playfully as she slapped his arm. "It's the truth."

"I'm not emotional and sappy." She defended. "I'm just a softy."

Troy bit back a laugh. "Sure, let's go with that if it makes you happy."

"Whatever."

* * *

"_I do." _

"_By the power vested in me and the state of New Mexico, I now pronounce you man and wife." The priest smiled. "You may now kiss your bride." _

_Troy smiled brightly as he dipped Sharpay dramatically and kissed her softly on the lips, not too passionately since both of their families were there. The two broke apart smiling as they heard everyone start applauding for them. Troy set her back on her feet but kept his hold on his wifes' waist. "I love you Mrs. Bolton."_

_Sharpay giggled at his corniness and placed another quick kiss on his lips. "I love you too husband." _

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"_Troy, I swear you are never laying another finger on me again." Sharpay hissed, holding a hand on her aching back as his hand rested on her bulging abdomen, her being seven months pregnant. "This is all your fault." _

_Troy started rubbing circles on her stomach as she sat in the couch, leaning against him while she closed her eyes for a nap. "I'm sorry you have to go through this Pay. If I could take it all away from you and endure it, I would in a heartbeat." He whispered lovingly into her hair, kissing it gently afterwards. He felt his baby start kicking and grinned like a fool. No matter how many times he felt it, it still made his heart flutter. _

"_I know you would Troy. I'm sorry for being such a grouch all the time." She placed her hand on top of his that was on her stomach and the two of them stayed silent after that, feeling their baby kick. _

------------------------------

"_Daddy that tickles!" Four year old Tressa Bolton shrieked, pushing his hand away that held a little feather, smiling. _

_Troy grinned as he picked her up in his arms effortlessly, tickling her stomach just to hear her giggle again. She wiggled in his arms before he stopped, Tressa wrapping her tiny arms around his neck. He held her up on his hip as he walked her over to their blanket that was laid out on the park grass, under a tree in the shade. Once he set her down, she picked up the feather and tickled his nose with it, giggling the while time. Troy scrunched up his nose and laughed himself as she laughed some more at the look on his face. "What are you doing baby girl?" He asked rhetorically, picking her up and placing her on his lap. She immediately cuddled into him, resting her head on his shoulder. _

"_Making daddy laugh." She answered and picked up his hand, playing with his fingers. _

_Troy smiled softly at her words and placed a kiss on the top of her head before stroking her hair soothingly. _

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"_Daddy, why don't I have a mommy?" _

_Troys' head shot up from the TV and snapped his attention to his daughter who was innocently looking up at him with her big, blue eyes. He opened and closed his mouth for a few seconds. "Wh-what?" He stuttered. _

_Eight year old Tressa climbed up onto the couch and onto his lap, looking up at him as he placed a secure arm around her so she wouldn't fall. "Why don't I have a mommy?" She repeated, not knowing how much that question hurt him. "Lacey has a mommy and a daddy. Why not me?" She questioned again. _

_Troy took a deep breath. He knew this question was going to come up sooner or later; he just hoped it was later. "Well, princess." He started, trying to form it in a way an eight year old would understand. "You're mommy is an angel." He started out, smiling softly at the beauty in front of him. "She's our guardian angel." _

"_Where?" _

"_In heaven. When you were born, mommy had something more important to do- look after us and make sure you and I would be ok." He explained softly, knowing Tressa probably wouldn't understand that. "Mommy loves you; don't ever think that she doesn't." _

"_Then why'd she leave?" _

_Troys' eyes started watering. "I don't know." Troy blinked back the tears. "Tressa, just know that she is always right here." He placed her hand over his heart and then put her hand over her own heart. "She'll always be with us sweetie pie." He kissed her temple. "She loves us." _

"_She loves you like I do." Tressa stated with a smile._

_Troy smiled as well. "I love you too baby girl." _

Troy unknowingly smiled in his sleep, cuddling with the closest pillow near him as if it were Sharpay. Life had been hard with just him and his baby girl. From the toddler years, the terrible two's, the potty training, then of course the kindergarten year and moving up. From the cootie and 'My daddy is the only man in my life' stage to the dating stage, the back talking and much more. One thing was for sure; he did and would always love and support his little girl through it all.

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**Well, sucky chapter for sure. **

**I'm so sorry for not updating sooner. Things have been busy like I said. I hope you enjoyed this update even though it's really short. Again, I hope you guys aren't mad with my decision to end this soon. Within the next few chapters, you'll see everything start to wrap up and come together. **

**Thank you for the reviews from last chapter. Maybe you could review this one as well? (Even though it was terrible?)**


	16. Chapter 16

**Wow…this update is extremely late. I am so sorry. I guess I just needed some time away from this to really figure everything out. There is one more chapter after this then this story is finished! **

**A/N: I don't own anything you recognize. **

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"He'll be home in twenty minutes baby."

Tressa glanced up from her computer to see her grandmothers, Lucille and Lyndsey, standing in the doorway of her bedroom. The two were dressed in summer dresses, both a light shade of yellow. Tressa, who was dressed in a light purple summer dress, was putting the finishing touches on the video for Troy. "Almost done. Are all the guests here?" She asked, saving the changes and popping out the disk. She placed it in a CD case and jumped off her bed, slipping her flip flops on.

"Yup. Everyone's down stairs and in the backyard, minus your father and grandfather." Lucille answered and grabbed the laptop to help her granddaughter out. "Chad's about to eat all the food so you better go down and stop him." She added with a giggle.

Tressa rolled her eyes. "I told him yesterday to act his age and behave." She muttered, slipping out of the room and closing it when her grandmothers left. "So, everything is in place and is Grandpa starting the grilling?" She asked about Vance who was in charge of the grill today.

Lyndsey laughed as she stopped her granddaughter from moving. "Everything is fine. Don't worry about it."

"I just want everything to be perfect." Tressa said softly, walking down the stairs. She placed the CD case on top if the TV as Lucille set the lap top on the TV stand. "I need to finish the chocolates."

The grandmothers shared a look before following their granddaughter to the kitchen. Tressa took out a tray of chocolates, in the shape of basketballs, out from the fridge and placed them on a plate. Afterwards, she melted some chocolate and poured it into the molds before shoving them in the fridge to cool. By this time, the grandmothers left to help with last minute cleaning. Tressa pulled her hair into a ponytail and checked in with Vance outside. "Everything going ok grandpa?" She asked, hugging him briefly.

"Perfect, angel." He kissed her forehead and continued with the food. She saw Jason and Ryan cleaning the pool with Adam and Kylie sitting on the stairs in the shallow end. She walked over to them and kissed the kids' heads and turned to the adults. "Need any help?"

"I think we're ok Tress." Jason smiled, squinting his eyes from the sun.

"Yeah we're ok. You need to relax and plant your butt on the couch inside." Ryan gave her a knowing look and she smiled bashfully.

"Ok, ok, ok. I'll go sit down and make everyone happy!" She held her hands up in surrender as she backed away. Once she was inside, she placed her sunglasses in the top of her head and did exactly what everyone wanted her to do, sat down. Chad immediately sat down next to her, placing an arm around her shoulders. "This is great kiddo."

"Thanks Uncle Chad." She leaned her head on his shoulder just as Lacey and Aidan entered the house.

"The party is officially here!" Lacey announced, smiling at everyone when they turned to look at her. "Not Troy, but me." She clarified. She pushed her way through the small crowd until she sat down on the other side of Tressa. "I have arrived."

Tressa giggled as she hugged her friend. "I hadn't noticed." She said sarcastically before hugging Aidan as well. "Thanks for coming guys."

"Anything for you Tressa." He smiled softly before glancing around the room quickly, his gaze ending on Tressa. "Everything looks great here Tress. You did a great job."

Lacey smiled to herself as she saw her best friend blush at her ex-boyfriends' comments. Tressa, however, didn't notice Lacey as she smiled at Aidan in response. "Thank you. I worked really hard to put this all together. Let's just hope he likes it."

"He's an idiot if he doesn't like this." Lacey reassured her, throwing an arm around Tressa and giving her a side hug. Just then, Adam and Kylie walked over to them, Adam sitting on Tressas' lap and Kylie crawling onto Lacey.

"Hey Tress-Tress." Adam said as he buried his head in his cousins' shoulder.

Tressa smiled as she pulled him closer to her. "Hey Adam, did you have fun in the pool?"

"Yes! It was very fun! We splashed Daddy and Uncle Jason!" Kylie giggled as she played with Laceys' necklace.

"Why does that not surprise me?" Lacey teased, tickling her stomach earning a loud giggle in return.

"There they are." Jason said as him and Ryan walked into the room, dripping wet, fake glaring at the twins who were smiling innocently back at them. Tressa held in her giggles as Ryan spit some water out of his mouth and onto the floor. Lacey and Aidan glanced between the kids and the adults, smiling; waiting to see what was going to happen. "I think we need to do something about this." Jason added.

Kylie and Adam tightened their grip on Tressa and Lacey cautiously but still smiled at the adults like they did nothing wrong. "About what Uncle Jason?" Kylie asked with a bat of her eyelashes.

"About what Uncle Jason?" Jason mimicked in a girls voice, earning a laugh from everyone in the room who was watching before him and Ryan unexpectedly picked up one twin, swinging them around in the air and ending with hugging them tightly, soaking them and their clothes successfully. The twins laughed as they tried to pull away from them put it was no luck.

"Troy's here!" Taylor announced, turning the lights off and running into the room. "Everyone hide!" Everyone scattered around the living room trying to find a quick place to hide. Tressa and Lacey hid behind the couch like they always used to do when they were little. The twins scurried over next to them as well while Aidan stood behind one of the curtains. The best hiding of all was Chad as he hid behind a table and used his hair as a fake chia pet. They all heard the door open and close before Troy and his dad walked into the hallway. "Why are all the lights off?" Troy asked, walking into the room and turning them on.

"Surprise!"

Troy stepped back, a hand to his heart fearfully. He looked back between his dad and the guests before smiling brightly. "What is this for?" He asked, hugging people as they walked up to him to give him a hug. Lacey pulled away from him and let Tressa answer that question. Firstly, Tressa gave him a huge hug then gave him the answer. "I planned this with the help of everyone here." She smiled. "It's a 'You're the best father in the world' party."

Troy glanced around at everyone in awe before looking back on his daughter, wide eyed. "You did all this for me?" Tressa simply nodded her to which he just grinned. "I don't know what to say." He put an arm around her and pulled her to his side, kissing the side of her head. "Thank you so much baby girl." He whispered.

"You're welcome daddy. Now, you go outside with the guys and open up a cold beer while everyone else caters to you."

Troy, still in shock, had to have Chad pull him out to the backyard. He stumbled a bit before regaining his footing and sitting down on a lawn chair, the guys joining him. "Whose idea was this again?"

"Your daughters'." Jason laughed, hading him a bottle of beer. "Don't question it. Just go with the flow."

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"Is everything all set with the video?" Tressa questioned Ryan, glancing out through the open back door to make sure her father wasn't coming. The family had already eaten dinner and was talking with each other and such. Tressa watched her uncle set up the DVD.

"Tressa, everything is set. Why don't you gather everyone around the screen?"

Tressa smiled and immediately went outside, asking everyone to sit near the projector screen, that was rented from one of the local stores, and moved up front so everyone could see and hear her. "Ok, so I did a little something else for you today daddy." Troy gave her a look and she bit her lip softly. "I know, you already think I did enough for you but this is the last thing today, promise." She glanced at Ryan who was behind the crowd near the wires and computer set up, connecting everything to the projector screen. He nodded and she smiled, turning back to her father and the crowd. "Hope you enjoy."

She quickly moved out of the way and towards the back near her uncle.

The first picture that popped up on the screen was of Troy when he was 17 years old with a smiling Sharpay wrapped up in his arms, both smiling for the camera brightly. Tressa decided to start with a few minutes of pictures of her mom and dad then transfer over to pictures of her and her dad. The first song being played was 'I'll Be' by Edwin McCain. The pictures varied between prom pictures, goofing off pictures, wedding pictures and also family pictures from vacations and such. As Troy watched the video, he cried, laughed, and even rolled his eyes at his late wifes' child like behavior that was caught on camera. Lucille, who sat next to him, rubbed his back comfortingly as she cried as well like most of the family around them. The segment between the couple ended with a picture of them on their wedding day, dancing as their foreheads were leaning against the other.

After that, a picture of Troy with a young Tressa, when she was about six, sitting on his lap as he tickled her sides gently, making her laugh, popped up on the screen and the song 'That's my Dad' by TJ Loughran started playing. The first few pictures that were shown were of Troy holding a newborn Tressa in his arms and various ones of his feeding her and such. Those pictures slowly went through the span of her childhood years like a clip of her first step and words, then her first birthday, night in a big kids bed, and moving up until she was starting elementary school, Tressa wearing a cute pink dress with her hair in pig tails. She was beaming at the camera, making everyone laugh, including herself and Troy. The video slowly ended after going through the years of her growing up with pictures of the two of them together. By the time the video ended, not a single person in the room wasn't crying.

Tressa looked over at her father to see what his reaction would be and was immediately wrapped up in his arms as he hugged her tightly, kissing the top of her head many times. Moments later, Troy pulled away from her and kissed her forehead. "That was beautiful baby girl."

"Only for the best dad in the world." She whispered as she buried her head in his shoulder, smiling to herself.

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Troy looked out the window that was above the kitchen sink as he finished washing the dishes. He smiled at the sight of his daughter laughing with Lacey and Aidan beneath the stars as they hung out for a little while longer before curfew. "You really are doing a great job with her baby." Lucille whispered, coming up behind him and resting her hand on his shoulder as she too smiled.

Troy turned away from the window and towards his mother. "Thank you mom. I couldn't have done it without you or dad." He kissed her cheek as his hands continued washing the plate he had started.

"Of course you could have. We raised a strong boy." She rubbed his back for a moment before grabbing a dry towel and held her hand out for the wet plate he just finished washing. "You don't have to help mom. You've done enough." He started but once he saw the pointed look his mother gave him, he handed over the plate and began washing another one in the soapy water.

"I'd never thought I'd see the day my son did dishes." Lucille teased, earning a mock glare form her son before he too chuckled. "Seriously, you and Chad would always leave your dishes everywhere."

"Yeah Chad and I were always the messy ones." Troy agreed. "But things change when you move in with a neat freak of a girlfriend and have a child." He smiled softly, turning to his mother to hand her another dish.

"Don't I know it?" Lucille muttered loud enough for Troy to hear. "Your father is one of the messiest men I know. I swear his crap would always be lying around and I'd be the one running around to pick it all up. I'd be the one to make sure all the laundry was done, the dishes were clean, the bathroom was clean, everything. You're father is lazy and messy." Lucille winked at him to show him she was kidding.

Troy laughed. "I don't doubt that." He handed her a dish then nudged her side with his elbow. "Your secret is safe with me."

Lucille giggled and set the plate on the drying rack. "That's good to know."

A few minutes of silence passed as the mother/son finished the dishes successfully and hung up all the towels. Troy grabbed the sponge from the sink and walked over to the stove, scrubbing the different sauces from the BBQ off of it. "You know mom?" He asked, watching as she looked up from putting left over food into the fridge. "You're a really great mom. I don't know if I've told you that many times but you really are. I love you." He smiled before turning back to the stove.

Lucille smiled softly at his back, tears springing to her eyes at the sweet words uttered from her sons' mouth. She placed the bag of food that was in her hands down and walked over to him, turning him around gently and hugging him. "Thanks baby." Troy accepted the hug and wrapped her arms around her protectively. "I love you too."

Just then, Jack walked into the room and stopped when he saw them hugging. "Am I interrupting something?" He asked, smiling gently at his family.

The two pulled away and smiled at him. "No. Troy and I were just talking." Lucille answered, rubbing a finger under her eyes to rid of the mascara from her tears. "Why? Did you need something hunny?"

"No. I'm just letting you know that I'm going to bed." He answered, pressing a kiss to her cheek afterwards. "Good night love." He whispered lovingly in her ear before pulling away. He turned to Troy and patted him on the back. "Good night son."

"Night dad."

Jack turned around and out of the room, hurrying towards the stairs. Lucille rolled her eyes and tapped her foot. "Jack, come back here and help clean up. Don't think that you can just kiss my cheek and think you can get away with everything." She yelled before following after him, giving Troy an apologetic smile before leaving.

Troy shook his head, hiding a smile as he turned back to cleaning the stove. "Crazy parents." Just then, Tressa walked in the back door, smiling as she rubbed her arms gently from the cool breeze. "Hey daddy."

He looked up and smiled at her. "Hey sweetie. Everyone went home?"

"Yeah. It was cutting close to curfew." She answered as she hopped onto a bar stool. "Do you need any help cleaning up?"

Troy shook his head as he threw the sponge into the sink. "You have done enough. Today was amazing baby girl, thank you." He walked over to her and placed a kiss on the top of her head as she stood up. She grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the stairs. "Come on, let's go to bed."

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**I know it was short and I'm sorry. At least it's an update right? Anyway, like I said earlier, there is one more chapter left in this story. This was so much fun to write so thank you for reading/reviewing. It means the a lot to me! **


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